Company
by Shanimalx
Summary: "It's been years since Camp Half-Blood was operational and Annabeth is the only camper left: Its only when she meets Percy Jackson, a suicidal teenager with surprising potential, that she believes there may still be hope for the But there are some things you just don't expect to .." Percabeth (In-progress, 8 chapters, monthly/bi-monthly updates)
1. All Alone

**The characters/events/circumstances mentioned in this fic with any relation or connection to the characters/event/circumstances in the Percy Jackson series are property of Rick Riordan. **

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**Chapter 1: "All Alone" or "Gone, Gone, Gone"**

Practically every day was the same for Annabeth. 7 am: wake up, grab a muffin, go for a morning jog. Back by 8 to tidy the cabins and then a few hours to go through the activities at camp. Just before dinner every night, Annabeth would go through all the files in Chiron's office, now dusty from years of inactivity.

It had been several years since Camp Half-Blood was fully operational: all the other campers had either left, gone missing, or even been killed; protectors sent out to retrieve new demigods seldom came back, and when they did they were always empty handed and/or trailed by monsters. Even the cleaning harpies had gone.

Years ago, the gods had slowly begun to go silent, and the camp director, Mr. D, had long since left his post, apparently under the impression that his 'sentence' had miraculously ended. Chiron had predicted the camp's spiral into abandonment and left to live the rest of his life with his cousins, but not before encouraging Annabeth, his closest pupil, to do the same._ "Go home to your family, Annabeth. Try and forget about all this. I don't know what happened to the gods but it's obvious there is no hope left in trying to continue the camp."_ She'd heard him, but she didn't listen. As the new self-appointed camp director, Annabeth tried to motivate the other campers by suggesting to order a quest to find out why the gods had mysteriously disappeared, but the campers had already begun to lose hope. Despite her efforts to keep it alive and functional, Camp Half-Blood slowly died. Satyrs were sent on double duty and told not to return unless they had at least two demigods under their protection, but most never returned. Camp attendance quickly went downhill and soon enough, Annabeth was the only camper left.

As she fingered through the file folders, each containing profile information on all of her old friends, she allowed memories of the camp's past to flood over her: Clarisse, a daughter of Ares who no one really got along well with, but she managed to find friends anyway; Beckendorf (whose real name was Charlie), a friendly son of Hephestus who could build anything you could imagine; the Stoll twins, Connor and Travis, sons of Hermes who you had to be careful around or else you might end up with a whoopee cushion on your seat at dinner; and Thalia, a daughter of Zeus and Annabeth's best friend who had left camp to search for their mutual acquaintance, Luke, but never returned. She stared at Thalia's smiling picture for a while, then sighed and closed the folder with a plume of dust.

She walked along the porch surrounding the big house and gazed across the empty hills at the sun setting over the overgrown strawberry fields, the camp's old source of income. There had been a significant amount of money left over for Annabeth to spend on food and supplies, but she was running low. She was thankful, however, that she didn't have bills to pay. Perhaps water and electricity came straight from Olympus as a sort of donation to the camp for looking after their kids. Anyway, she'd have to look for a job soon or else she was going to starve.

Annabeth's stomach rumbled. Boy, was she hungry. She left the porch and headed to the amphitheater to start a fire and cook herself dinner. Towards the end of the camp's life, the magical fire there had turned a depressing grey and gotten smaller and smaller until it had gone out all together. Even the magic sacrificial braziers at the dining pavilion had gone out - who needs them when there aren't any gods to sacrifice to?

Now that the camp lay empty for years, Annabeth contemplated returning to her dad and stepmom in California. She'd need to raise funds for transportation, but after all the troubles she'd been through with them, she wasn't sure she wanted to go back. Walking back to the deserted U of cabins, she resolved to stay for at least the winter because of the camp's magical ability to mimic springtime year-round. Moonlight shone on the twelve cabins and created a sense of eeriness from the inactivity as Annabeth slowly made her way to Cabin Six, Athena's cabin. The carved stone owl above the doorway once smiled down on campers with an intellectual grace, but now it loomed over Annabeth's head and glared at her with hostility, like it would swoop down at her and tear her eyes out any minute now. She didn't pay any attention. She mindlessly walked into the cabin and flicked on the light switch.

Before her lay the remains of Cabin Six. The three bunk beds in the corner of the room were all made but dusty save for one. Annabeth had taken the pictures that hung on the walls in Chiron's office and re-taped them on the wall near her bunk. Maps and charts and battle plans and blueprints and more lay strewn along a series of desks that once belonged to Annabeth's siblings. Shelves above the desks were jam-packed with old books ranging from encyclopedias to historical texts to fictional works. The children of Athena used to sit there all day and pour over battle strategy essays, half-finished formulas and new artillery blueprints. Now the papers and books were covered with a thick layer of dust and only one of the desks was cleaned off; Annabeth couldn't bring herself to go through her bothers' and sisters' old belongings. On the empty desk sat only an old desk lamp and half-used notebook, and on the shelf sat stacks of older notebooks of the same kind, all completely filled. Annabeth sat down at the desk, flipped open the notebook to the next empty page and began to write:

"_Year 3, day 314_

_The camp is still empty. I went for a jog this morning and met up with Angela from the 7-11 down the road afterwards. She bought me breakfast and we chatted for a little while about the upcoming holidays. I came back and found that the tan pegasus had flown away this morning, so now only the tall black one remains._

_I'm getting really anxious. The thought crosses my mind more and more often to relight a brazier and try contact the gods. I pray to Athena every night, but have gotten no answer yet. My hope is dwindling. I've decided to at least wait out the winter here before returning to my dad in San Francisco. Looks like I'll be spending Christmas by myself._

_$242.16, 1 pegasus left._"

She closed the notebook and switched off the light. Pulling the covers over herself, Annabeth closed her eyes and let the waves lapping at the shores on the Long Island Sound carry her to dreamland.

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**A small chapter, but it ****_is_**** more of an introduction. You can expect at least an update every (other) month. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include!**

**NEXT CHAPTER POSTED! **


	2. HUGE Cliffhanger

**1 favorite, ****3 reviews, ********8 follows ** and ******************************104 views** all in the first 24 hours! Thanks so much guys! :3 As a treat, here's the next chapter SUPER EARLY (because I happen to be done with it)!  


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**Chapter 2: "HUGE Cliffhanger" or "Fresh off the...Bridge?"**

Running everyday for three years has its advantages. For one thing, Annabeth was in great shape. She could increase her distance almost monthly and still feel great when she got back to camp. First, she'd ride a pegasus into Melville, a small town that was one of the strawberry trucks' first stops, and try to sell anything she could, from salvaged strawberries, to some of the 40s CDs Chiron left behind. Then she would jog as far as she could, where the pegasus would meet her and fly her back to camp. It would be easier to just run halfway there and back, but Annabeth liked to see how far she could go. She supposed it also had something to do with Olympus being at the top of the Empire State Building-maybe if she got close enough to it on a daily basis, the answer to saving the camp would be clearer, or at least the gods would notice her. No luck yet.

Lately she'd been able to make it all the way to the East River before turning back, but she'd made it her goal to be able to run across the Williamsburg Bridge and into Manhattan. She'd even thought about joining a marathon before leaving for her dad's place.

Weirdly enough, Annabeth hadn't been attacked by or even spotted any monsters since the camp started its decline. Normally on a trip into the city, one could spot nature spirits in Central Park, or peaceful giants playing in the waters of the Hudson, but even the naiads in the canoe lake at Camp Half-Blood had disappeared. It was like the entire mythological world that Annabeth had known and studied since she was seven had completely vanished - simply ceased to exist.

But that didn't mean that Annabeth simply didn't have a biological mother anymore. It was illogical and she refused to believe it. She knew there must be some hope to restore Olympus and get the camp up and running again to its former glory. She just didn't know how.

Annabeth allowed her body to run on automatic and didn't pay any attention to her fatigue. A sharp November wind blew at her face and made her skin tingle, but she paid it no mind. She let her mind wander as she jogged through Brooklyn at a steady pace. The fate of the camp crossed her mind and she thought about what had happened to all her friends. She wondered if there were more demigods out there, struggling through school with ADHD and/or Dyslexia like she had. Actually no, there had to be. The gods only disappeared three years ago, and the satyrs had detected demigod activity all over the country when the camp was declining. The only fact was that the kids were never collected. Annabeth's spirits rose. They may even still be alive! If there was at least one half-blood struggling out there, she swore on the River Styx (if it even existed anymore) that she would find them. She prayed to her mom for some help, and Hermes, the god of travelers, too, just in case.

Thinking about the lost young demigods reminded Annabeth of her troubled childhood, and she almost envied them for being able to lead a semi-normal life by not running from monsters every other day. Yet at the same time, she felt bad for them that they would never know the true reason for all of their difficulties, or that they were half god.

She had to admit, the half god part was pretty cool. Even though being the daughter Athena didn't come with cool abilities like building awesome stuff or being a super talented athlete, it was still a privilege to have a goddess for a mother (even if she was seldom around for support). How many people do you know who can brag about having a god for a parent? Not many.

Before she knew it, Annabeth was closing in on the Williamsburg bridge. She'd stopped at the edge of the river the day before, but today she was determined to cross it. Her ribs started aching and her feet felt almost like lead, but she inhaled deeply and pressed on.

Now she was on the bridge. Now she was almost past the first support. Now she was almost halfway.

But something made her stop.

Just ahead, a figure in a dark hoodie stood on the outer edge of the bridge, gripping the railing behind him and gazing down into the water. Annabeth realized with a jolt that it was a boy her age, and he was going to jump. Despite her exhaustion, she ran over to him and grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait!" she yelled over the roar of noise from the city, "What are you doing?"

He replied so quietly, Annabeth could barely hear him. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to jump."

"Well don't!" The boy turned his head to look at her. He had startlingly beautiful eyes - green like the sea - that contrasted garishly with the bags beneath them and his ghostly pale skin. Up close, Annabeth noticed that he smelled a bit like rotten fish and his clothes and skin were dirty, and that he was painfully skinny, like he'd been living on the streets for weeks. He probably had.

"Why not?" he mumbled. "I've got nothing to live for."

Annabeth dug around the pockets of her brain for anything to say. "What about your mom and dad? Won't they miss you?"

"My mom's dead, and my step dad hates me. He'll be happier once I'm gone. He might even throw a party with his poker buddies or something." He smiled weakly at the idea but looked down at the river and frowned again.

"What about your dad?" Annabeth asked, "Your biological one I mean."

The boy was silent for a while as he stared blankly out across the water. "'Lost at-' Dead. He's dead too." His eyes came back into focus on Annabeth, but this time they had a hint of sadness to them. "He died before I was born. I didn't even know him."

Dang, this kid really _was_ depressed. Annabeth was quickly running out of things to say. "Well, what about your friends? Or relatives? Couldn't you live with them?"

The boy laughed, but it was low and airy. It sounded almost like a whimper. "What friends? I've gotten kicked out of every school I've ever been in since kindergarten. I don't have any friends." The sad look in his eyes deepened. "And my mom was an only child. I don't have anyone else."

Annabeth racked her brains for something else to say. Something about this kid seemed oddly suspicious. She had to keep him alive. "You've got me."

He turned his head to look at her, scowling. "I don't even know you."

"Well you do now! My name's Annabeth Chase and I live out on Long Island by myself. I'm 15 years old and I want to be an architect." The boy looked at her in a way that she couldn't tell whether he was curious or creeped out. But she had to keep him busy. "What's your name?"

"You live alone?" Curiosity. Definitely curiosity.

"Yep. I got the whole place to myself. Its kind of lonely though."

"But you're 15. Isn't that like, illegal?"

"No idea, but who cares?"

The boy looked at her a little longer then turned and swatted the air with his hand. "Go away. Can't you see I'm trying to jump off a bridge?"

Damn. So close. She tried another strategy

"But why?"

"I told you, I've got nothing to live for."

"No, I mean why commit suicide by jumping off a bridge?"

"I don't know. I guess I've just always been drawn to water. It relaxes me." He stared longingly at the River below.

"But drowning damages your internal organs. There are lots of other, better ways to die. You could try a blunt force to the head instead. That way you can donate your body to science or even help others waiting for a transplant." He gave her that look again. "At least, that's what I would do."

"So you're like a suicide expert or something? Or are you studying to work in a morgue?"

Annabeth couldn't help but laugh. "No, I told you I wanted to be an architect. But I have done a lot of research on the subject. I was in your place once too, but a friend helped me out and now I'm happy as ever."

They were silent. People passed but no one stopped. Too busy to pay attention to anyone else Annabeth figured, or too selfish to involve themselves. That was one thing Annabeth liked about living alone. It gave her a lot of time to ponder life.

Finally, Annabeth played her last card. "Just don't jump, okay? You don't have to come live with me or anything if you don't want to, but at least let me help you."

The boy continued to stare out onto the river. "Why do you live alone? Don't _you_ have family or friends?"

Annabeth smiled. The conversation was taking a turn for the better. "My dad lives in California, but we never really got along, especially when he married my witch of a step mom. I ran away when I was seven. Then a few weeks later I met my two best friends, Thalia and Luke. They had run away from home too, so they understood how I felt. We were like our own little family. We made our way to this...camp on Long Island. It was for special kids like us, who didn't fit in with everyone else. We stayed for years, until it started to...go out of business. Kids started leaving, but I had nowhere to go so I stayed. Its been almost four years since everyone left."

They both were silent again.

"What do you mean 'special kids'?" He asked, eyes still on the water below.

"Well, kids who..." Suddenly, it clicked, and Annabeth tingled with excitement. "Kids like you, actually. Kicked out of a ton of schools, only one known biological parent, you've probably been diagnosed with Dyslexia or ADHD, too."

The boy tensed up. Annabeth smiled.

"Teachers probably labeled you as a troublemaker for no reason and picked on you all year. Stuff happened that wasn't really your fault but when you tried to explain no one believed you and you were blamed anyway."

The boy's eyes widened. "How did you know?" Annabeth smiled wider.

"You get weird dreams that seem so real, but don't make any sense, and you've probably seen some amazing stuff too. Things no one else noticed?"

The boy's eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of his head. He turned all the way around to face Annabeth and pointed in the direction of Manhattan. "I swear, I saw an actual pegasus in Central park! With real wings and everything! Everyone else was convinced was just a loose police horse, but I know what I saw! IT WAS A PEGASUS!" He shook the handrail in frustration. Annabeth laughed.

"No really! It had wings!"

"I believe you!"

The boy scowled. "No you don't. You're laughing at me. You think I'm crazy."

"No, no, I do! I actually live with one."

The boy looked at her quizzically. "A pegasus?"

Annabeth nodded. "He's black with huge wings and a beautiful mane. I can show him to you if you want."

She didn't even have to wait for a response. The boy was nodding like crazy and grinning from ear to ear. "Well, come on then!" She stepped back from the rail and offered him her hand.

He took it, still grinning. "I'm Percy by the way. Percy Jackson."

He lifted his leg to straddle the railing between them, but Annabeth's hand was still sweaty from running and his fingers slipped from hers. Annabeth watched in horror as her new friend Percy Jackson fell backwards from the edge of the Williamsburg bridge into the murky waters of the East River.

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**_*dramatic music*_**** DUN DUN DUN. Cliffhanger! (This one could almost be called a bridge-hanger, but that would be technically inaccurate, and just plain mean). Oh hey this reminds me of another literal cliffhanger involving my OTP... ****_*sobs uncontrollably*_**

**Yes, I do know that you can't actually jump off the Williamsburg bridge. Please ignore that fact for the sake of the story...  
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**WHO ELSE IS EXCITED FOR SEA OF MONSTERS? I'm going to see it tomorrow :3 I can't wait, so I guess that's another reason why I posted early...but no more early updates! (Unless I'm feeling charitable)**

**This chapter is a bit longer, so expect more like this! l'll try to make each chapter +2K words. ;)**

**Almost 140 total visitors for chapter one! Thanks SO much!**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)  
**

**You can expect at least an update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**

**NEXT CHAPTER POSTED! **


	3. Wait, what?

**More than 350 total views! Yay! Again, thank you all so so SO much for your positive reviews (and favs and follows!) Even the short simple ones really make me feel loved! -^w^-**

**And so, the cliffhanger is finally relieved...you guys had better like this! I stay up 'til like 3am writing most of these chapters. xD Seriously though, this story is coming along so quickly you guys are the luckiest people on Earth. You barely had to wait a week...  
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**Chapter 3: "Wait, what?" OR "A REAL ACTUAL PEGASUS!"**

Annabeth stood gripping the handrails with white knuckles and her mouth gaping. She'd been _so_ excited; her silent prayer to her mother had been answered (and in the same day!). She was almost convinced that Percy was a demigod and was ecstatic about having a new friend to (possibly) live with.

That is, until he fell off the Williamsburg Bridge.

All of Annabeth's high hopes had gone down with Percy and died with an earth shattering pffft. She just hoped Percy hadn't died with them.

She craned her head over the edge of the bridge.

"Percy!"

It was a long way down, but she noticed a dark spot in the water.

"Percy?"

The spot moved and Annabeth let out a puff of air she didn't know she'd been holding in. Percy pulled the hood off his head and waved to Annabeth on the bridge to let her know he was okay.

"Go ashore!" She yelled, pointing to a shaded path just beside the bridge support. He waved back with a thumbs up and started paddling.

Annabeth jogged to the end of the bridge and hopped the guardrail. The shaded path she'd indicated was some sort of back way service road that was blocked off with a low gate and chained padlock, but she hopped that too and hoped no one noticed. At the end of the road, Percy trudged through the sand and shallow water to meet her.

"Are you okay?" Annabeth asked worriedly. "You're not hurt or anything?"

Percy shook his head. "I feel fine! Better than before I fell, actually."

And he looked better too. His body looked fuller and skin more colored, and the bags under his eyes had disappeared. He looked like the perfect picture of health. In other words, Annabeth was stumped. A fall that far should have at least injured him, and yet he looked as healthy as ever, despite her previous suspicion that he had been living on the streets for weeks.

Suddenly, she noticed something else. "You're dry."

"What?" Percy looked down and felt his clothes. "Okay, now that's weird."

Annabeth only smiled with a renewed sense of excitement. "Come on Water Boy, let me show you my pegasus."

Together, they walked back up the path to the start of the Williamsburg bridge. As they made their way across, Annabeth kept noticing little things about Percy that only confirmed her suspicions. His eyes sparkled and changed from green to blue, depending on the angle of the sun. His messy hair ruffled gently in waves when it blew in the wind. He began to smell less like rotten fish, and more like a fresh ocean breeze.

She couldn't help but grin like a maniac. Percy took notice.

"What are _you_ so happy about?"

Annabeth looked away. "Living alone for three years gets lonely sometimes. I've been praying for a friend."

"Oh." Percy looked at the pavement and-was he blushing? They walked in silence for a while.

"What, uh, what happened to your mom? You mentioned you had a stepmother..."

Annabeth took a deep breath.

"Its okay if you don't want to talk about it. It get it."

"No, its not that Percy. It's just complicated, that's all." She smiled up at him warmly. "It's a long story and a lot to take in. It's something better discussed over, say, lunch?"

Percy smiled. "Sure! If your pegasus can fly us there. That'd be so cool..."

Annabeth laughed. "Let's hope he can carry the two of us."

When they reached the end of the bridge, Annabeth led Percy towards an alleyway.

"So where are you from, Percy?"

"My mom had an apartment in Brooklyn. I lived there with her and my step dad Gabe until she died. We were never that rich to begin with, but Mom was-wait, why are we in an alleyway? There aren't any pegaguses here."

"Its 'pegasi', and of course not. I have to call him first!" Annabeth giggled.

"From an _alleyway?"_ Percy looked doubtful.

"Well, we can't fly away on him in the middle of New York City."

Percy nodded in agreement. Annabeth moved to a better place in the alleyway and motioned for Percy to step back.

"The Mist wouldn't _nearly_ be thick enough, plus the acoustics have to be just right." She put her fingers to her mouth and whistled a prize-winning Taxi-cab hail.

"Who said anything about fog, or - ow!"

Annabeth held her hand up in the air, signaling to wait, and searched the sky. Then she pointed up at a dark object spiraling towards them. "There."

An ebony bird-like figure roughly the size of a small car trotted into the alleyway and flexed its wings, almost trampling Percy and smacking him the face. The pegasus nickered.

"Percy, this is my pegasus. Or at least the only one left at camp." The pegasus winnied happily and shook his mane.

**Sup bro. Name's Blackjack.**

Percy's face quickly went from wonderstruck to pale as he staggered away. "You didn't tell me it could talk!"

Annabeth looked at him warily. "That's because he can't."

"Uh, yes he can. He just looked right at me and said 'Sup bro' in his creepy horse voice." The pegasus grumbled and Percy glanced sideways at it.

**Hey, man, watch it. I don't appreciate being called creepy. **

"He-he says he doesn't appreciate being called creepy." Annabeth continued to look at Percy in confusion. "Tell me you can hear him too, or I might just be going crazy."

"No, he's never spoken to me before. All I hear is normal horse sounds." The pegasus stomped the ground and neighed in annoyance.

**Come on, dude!** **Don't insult me! I know a son of the sea god when I see one. Now can we get going? I left in the middle of my very delicious breakfast. **

Percy's eyes zoned out for a second. "A son of what?"

"What? What did he say?" Annabeth urged.

Percy focused back on her face. "He...he says...something about...a son of...the sea god?" Annabeth could barely contain her excitement. "What does he mean by that?"

"It means we've got a LOT to talk about. Come on!" Annabeth helped Percy up onto the pegasus's back, and it spread its wings and soared from the alleyway and into the sky.

"You know," Percy yelled over the wind, "this would be really cool if I hadn't just realized I hate flying!"

Annabeth's laughter echoed out into the clouds surrounding them as Percy gripped the pegasus tighter.

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When they landed, Annabeth helped a queasy Percy off the pegasus's back and asked if he was okay. "Do you need a barf bag or anything?"

Percy shook his pale head. "I'll be fine. I just need to sit down for a while." Annabeth carefully led him around the corner to the front of the store they had landed behind-Angela's 7-11. She was hoping to get some privacy while they made their way to the diner around the corner, but no such luck. Angela spotted her from her spot behind the checkout counter and came rushing out to meet them.

"Annie, sweetheart! Good to see ya!" Angela was only 16-a year older than Annabeth, but she still insisted on calling everyone 'sweetheart'. She had long, flowing caramel-colored hair, and big, soft brown eyes to match. She was skinny, but strong, and comfortable in her own skin. However, she wasn't _ever_ comfortable where she was. She could barely sit still, and when her butt wasn't moving, her mouth was. Angela would take any chance she got to stop Annabeth on the street and talk to her. She was a nice girl that Annabeth got along well with, but Annabeth thought she had too much energy to be stuck in the 7-11 way out here.

"Hey, Angela. How's it going?" Annabeth asked, just to be polite.

"UHG, you have _no idea_ how _dreadfully horrible_ it is to be stuck behind that counter all day," she groaned. "I'm so glad you stopped by!"

"Mhm!" Annabeth nodded, quickly trying to pass without getting caught in one of Angela's speeches.

"My mom actually just left to go pick up some new product in Ohio-can you believe it? _Ohio!-_I guess it's some super exclusive promotion or something, but it's not like we get that much business anyway, but she won't be back for a few days and when she told me I was so excited I was like OMG I could _totally_ hang out with Annabeth the whole time we could have a _huge_ party for just us and we would have _so_ much fun like she wouldn't even have to know because this is my winter break for Pete's sake, I'm to supposed to be enjoying myself, not spending the entire time sitting around in a dumpy old 7-11 working my butt off, you know? I won't have anything interesting to talk to by friends about when I get back to school! Sadie, that girl I told you about yesterday, she went to _Switzerland_ with her parents to go skiing, and she emailed my this morning going on and on about this hot Swiss guy she met and now they're like BFFs or something. I mean, where's _my_ hot Swiss guy?" Angela stopped suddenly and turned to Percy.

"Annabeth, aren't you going to introduce me to your _friend?"_

"Um, actually we were just headed to-"

"I'm Angela." She reached out to grab Percy's hand and shook it violently.

"P-p-percy," he managed to get out through his chattering teeth.

Annabeth tried to hurry things along. "I'm sure Percy would love to get to know you, Angela, but we um, have a reservation to make. At Alonso's. Right now. So if you don't mind we'd like to get going."

Angela frowned. "Ok, well I guess if you have to leave now...but let me know about that party I mentioned. Just us girls, unless Percy wants to come too!" She winked at him and waved before returning to her spot behind the counter.

Annabeth smiled and waved back, then pushed Percy through the door of the shop next door-Alonso's Diner.

She sighed and Percy let out a weak chuckle.

"Can I help you?" asked a waitress at the counter.

"Yes, table to two please." Percy was looking a little better, but he still needed Annabeth as a support.

"Right this way," the waitress said cheerily.

They followed her to a table by the windowed storefront and sat down on opposite sides on the table. The waitress set glasses of water down on the table, and Percy downed his in one gulp. Already the color was returning to his face.

Wiping his mouth on his sleeve, he said, "I thought you said you didn't have any friends."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. Percy smirked and sat back in his chair.

"She's actually really nice; she bought me breakfast just yesterday. But she's a nightmare to avoid. Sometimes I wish I just had to deal monsters instead."

"Monsters?"

Annabeth sighed. It was time to do some explaining. "You know about the Greek gods right?"

"You mean like Zeus and Hades and them?"

Annabeth nodded. "Well, in ancient Greece, the gods used to leave Olympus and sometimes they...fooled around...with the mortals."

"Yeah, I remember. That's how all those heroes were born." His eyes seemed to light up. "Like Perseus."

"Right. But, see...the thing is...they still do."

Percy stared blankly at Annabeth.

"The gods still sire children with mortals."

Annabeth hoped she was getting the message across to him, but he looked confused.

"What do you mean, _still_? Those were just myths."

"Was the pegasus you rode here on a myth?"

"No, but-" He looked down at the table and fiddled with his napkin as his brain worked.

"The gods are real Percy. They were real then, and they are now."

Percy scrunched his face up in frustration and ripped the napkin in half. It was like he was searching his brain for clarification but came across locked doors everywhere he looked. And he never had the right key. Annabeth remembered feeling the same way when she was told her mother was the great goddess Athena.

"They're alive," she said, "and they still sire children."

Percy's face paled as the puzzle pieces fell into place.

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**How will Percy react? What other surprising facts will he learn? What do Percy and Annabeth _really_ think of each other? All these questions and more will be answered in the next installment of... _Company! *dramatic soap opera music*  
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**So I saw the _Sea of Monsters_ movie and I'd have to say, it was a VERY nice recovery from the first one. It still wasn't exactly following the plot line, but movies almost never do, plus they had to make it flow from the first one. I loved the overall feeling of the movie, and the acting was great too. Of course I still got annoyed at some minor inaccuracies (and the lack of campers wearing authentic Camp-Half Blood shirts), but I was entertained and stayed hooked throughout the whole thing. Now I don't want to give too much away, but if you haven't seen it yet, I recommend it!**

**_Like my writing? Want to make yours more like it? Then make me your Beta! That's right folks, I'm putting my editing services on the table for your disposal! Check out my Beta profile for more details! *insert fast talk disclaimers and other nonsense*_**

******Wow, these author's notes are getting a bit long...sorry! Feel free to ignore them... :o**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)  
**

**You can expect at least an update every month. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**

**NEXT CHAPTER POSTED!**


	4. Anger Issues

**Have you checked out the poll yet? WELL, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!**

******I apologize if this update was a little later than you were expecting. I recently went on vacation to Washington D.C. for my birthday. As anyone who's ever been there knows, there is a LOT to do and I was VERY busy. Luckily, I have the next few chapters written out (action+Percabeth!), so you don't have to worry about me falling behind. :)**

******However, if I do happen to update late these next few weeks, it's because I've suddenly realized how close to school starting it actually was and rushed to finish my summer reading. I will probably vow not to use the internet until it was done! (And more or less succeed). But like I said, I'm several chapters ahead, so you need not worry about late updates. (At least until school starts...)**

**In other news, almost 700 total views and almost 20 reviews?! And now, onto the next chapter...**

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**Chapter 4: "Anger Issues" OR "Sorry, Blondie. I don't do backstory."**

"'Son of the sea god,'" Percy whispered shakily, "He meant me, didn't he?"

Annabeth nodded.

"Is that why no one believed me? I've got special godly vision that lets me see mythical things?"

"Not exactly but wherever 'mythical things' exist, like pegasi, or monsters, Mist is generated. It clouds mortals' vision to keep them from seeing the real thing. Half-bloods like us can still be affected, but not as much. A Half-blood could see a pegasus, but a mortal would only see a normal horse, no wings. Understand?"

Percy nodded like he understood, but he still looked uneasy. "Mist...Half-bloods...monsters...this is a lot to take in..." He put his hands to head like he had a headache and sighed.

"I know, and I wish there was a better way to do it. You're lucky though. I was actually chased into camp by a cyclops before I was told." Annabeth shuddered at the memory.

"_I'm_ lucky?" Percy's uneasiness quickly turned to anger. "I've been living off the streets of Manhattan for more than a year, and it was actually an _improvement_ on my old life." He crossed his arms tightly and glared moodily out the window.

"Percy, I know you're upset, but-"

"What the hell am I even doing here? I can't believe I'm actually listening to you-and _believing_ it! I don't even know you!" He threw his hands up in the air. "Great job, Perce. Didn't your mother ever tell you not to talk to strangers? Or their talking pegasi for that matter?" He started to get up from the table to leave, but Annabeth caught his sleeve.

"Listen, I know it sounds crazy, but it's true!" She stood up to meet his face. "I'm not lying to you."

Percy gave her a disgusted look then turned away. _"Sure._ And my mom's not dead." Annabeth quickly recognized a hurt look in his eyes, a look she often saw in her friend Luke-lonesomeness from neglect. The reason he'd left camp.

"Percy..." He looked at her again and she saw desperation. He wanted to leave Annabeth and all this nonsense with her, but he also wanted to believe it. He wanted to believe there was some way he could be happy again. Annabeth let go of his sleeve and he willing sat back down.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked quietly.

Percy shook his head and laid it in his arms on the table.

"It'll make you feel better." No response.

"Alright. If you change your mind, I'm here for you"

The waitress came over again to ask them if they'd decided what to eat, and Annabeth ordered a hamburger for each of them. When the waitress left to place the orders, Annabeth began doodling on the back of her place mat with crayons until Percy broke the silence.

"She was trying to save up enough money to back to college and become a writer." Percy looked up and glanced cautiously at Annabeth. She put down her crayons and smiled at him understandingly. He sat up and started fiddling with his ripped napkin pieces. "My step-dad had plenty of cash, of course, but he never let her use any of it. We always had to raise our own money for vacation. The only place we ever went, though, was Montauk, in a little run-down cabin by the water." Percy's eyes zoned out. "It's where she met my dad."

"She'd actually done it-saved up enough money, plus some. We went to Montauk to celebrate, but a few days after we got back, they found cancer." His voice tightened as he choked back tears. "She used up all her money for treatment, but it wasn't enough."

Percy stared out the window for a while until he had himself under control.

"Gabe wouldn't help of course. He 'gave what he could spare', which wasn't much, then completely ditched us. She died a week later." His eyes started to water. "He never cared about us. He actually fought with the government to put me into foster care because he wasn't my real dad. They said he _was_ my legal guardian and that I was %100 his responsibility, but he ignored me anyway. Later he cursed my mom out for 'leaving me with him'. That it'd be heaven if I could 'catch cancer too'." Percy had ripped his napkin pieces in half again and again until he had a small pile of confetti in front of him. His fists were tightly clenched now, and tears silently rolled down his cheeks.

"I'd finally had enough. I locked myself in my bedroom for days and snuck out the fire escape at 6:30 every morning to walk to school. When I got home before he was back from work, I'd take all my mom's old stuff and hide it in my room before he found it and sold it. After school ended, I doubted Gabe would be willing to pay for another year, so I ran away. I stole a couple thousand dollars from one of his stashes I found and left with it. Within a week it was gone, but it felt good spending his money. I bought new clothes, a couple fancy dinners, a night in an upscale hotel room, and even a bike. I eventually resold it to pay for food, but it was nice living a privileged life for a while."

"After that, I'd sneak back in through the fire escape every so often to steal food, or more money until someone caught me one night. I got away, but I've been afraid to go back since." Percy wiped his face and risked a glance at Annabeth.

"That was a brave thing to do, leaving Gabe," she encouraged, "It was the right thing to do."

Percy only sniffled.

Just then the waitress came over with their meals. "Here you are Darlings! Oh my..." She turned to Annabeth. "Is your friend alright?" she asked quietly.

Annabeth played the pity card. "Oh no," she explained. "He just found out that his mother died of cancer; he's an orphan now! I was hoping this place would cheer him up-they loved coming here together since his dad left them, just the two of them. Sadly it only seemed to have made it worse." She pouted at Percy and stroked his hands. "It's okay," she told him. Percy looked slightly confused, and Annabeth hoped he wouldn't blow it, but he sniffled again, which seemed to seal the deal.

"Oh, you poor thing! Tell you what, you order anything on that menu that you want and you can have it-on the house!" She shook her head and tutted. "No child should ever have to go through that," she muttered as she walked back to the kitchen.

Annabeth did a victory dance in her head as Percy slowly understood what she did.

"That wasn't nice," he chided, but a shadow of a smile had begun to creep onto his face.

"How so?" she challenged, "It wasn't _that_ big of a lie." Annabeth smiled at him and they both dove into their burgers.

Two burgers, three milkshakes and six plates of french fries later, they left the diner, assuring their waitress that Percy was feeling _much_ better now.

They made the way down the road to camp laughing together.

"Thanks so much for that, Annabeth. I haven't had this much fun in a long time." They smiled at each other, but quickly turned away from embarrassment.

Annabeth looked down at the pavement, blushing lightly. In the hours since she'd met him, she'd grown to like him more and more. He reminded her strikingly of Thalia, which is probably why they got a long so well.

"Hey, do you think my mom knew?"

"Hm?" She looked up again.

"Do you think my mom knew about my dad? I mean, like the whole god thing."

Annabeth shrugged. "Maybe. A lot of times the gods are attracted to mortals because of their vision through the mist. Others, they go their whole life without knowing."

"Oh."

"Probably not though. The more kids realize who they are, the more monsters they attract. Supposedly half-bloods have a strong smell that the can detect. It generally starts when you're around 12 years old, unless you're brought back to camp somehow."

"Smell?" Percy thought for a second. "Maybe she did know. How else could she have wound up with Smelly Gabe? She was always to good for him..."

"'Smelly Gabe'?" Annabeth held back a snicker.

"Yeah, that was my nickname for him when I was little. My mom never stopped me, even though she tried her best to keep me from calling people names. I guess it stuck." Percy chuckled to himself at the memory. "But man did he smell! You could smell him all the way to Manhattan!"

They both started laughing out loud.

"I bet any monster within a ten mile radius or our apartment was instantly vaporized! Their monster friends learned to stay away!"

"S-st-stop it!" Annabeth managed between laughs, "I-I can't breathe!"

But Percy went on. "Man, you could bottle his BO and sell it to half-bloods as a monster repellent! Or an expensive French perfume!"

"A-and they could call it 'Monsieur Gabe's Anti-monster Parfum'!" Annabeth chimed in.

Percy clapped his hands together. "Good one! Maybe I should have taken that bath in the East River after all! All my exclusive Monsieur Gabe's aroma has been washed off!" he said in a terrible French accent.

The two of them cracked up laughing and couldn't stop until they reached camp. It was amazing how close they'd become since they'd met that morning; anyone observing would not hesitate to tell you that they were nothing less than life-long friends. Annabeth imagined many improvements on her life with Percy in it, and even found herself looking forward to finding him a permanent home. She prayed a silent 'Thank you' to Athena for finding her a friend.

* * *

Annabeth walked Percy to the top of Half-Blood hill.

"Can I open my eyes now?" he asked.

"Not yet, almost there." She stopped him at the crest of the hill, next to an enormous pine tree that the campers had used as a landmark since she'd gotten there. They called it Thalia's Pine because of the magnificent fight she'd had with the cyclops chasing her and her companions. She'd climbed the tree to escape it and single-handedly destroyed from the tree's boughs using only her shield and an old knife. The camp had never seen anything like that from a 12-year old demigod so the tree was named after her, though her powerful parentage may have helped (in both cases).

"Okay, open your eyes." Percy's eyes opened, and instantly widened as they took in the scene before them. Though empty and abandoned, Camp Half-blood still managed to look as magnificent as when Annabeth first saw it. The Big House's paint was starting to chip and fade, but it was still a beautiful baby blue that perfectly matched the clear November sky. The trees surrounding the valley were almost bare, but the camp's trees were a strong green and full as ever. Deep blue sparkling waves were blown onto the shore from the Long Island Sound and clashed with the pale sands of the beach. The U of cabins looked almost quaint from a distance.

"Wow." was all Percy could manage.

"I know right?! We haven't had a new camper in forever, and there's so much I want to show you! We do all sorts of training for quests and fighting monsters, and there's even a lava-spewing rock wall-" Suddenly Annabeth gasped and clapped her hands over her mouth.

"What? What is it? Have I got something on my face?" Percy asked. She shook her head and pointed at a spot above Percy's. He looked up.

Inches above him was a forked symbol flickering with a sea-green light-a trident.

"What the-?" Percy tried to swat it away, but Annabeth only giggled with excitement.

"Do you realize what this means?"

"Uhh, not really, but I get the feeling you're going to tell me."

"It means the gods are returning! It means there's hope for the camp! I knew it! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!" Annabeth jumped around, pumping her fist in the air.

"But it doesn't explain why I have a flaming fork over my head."

"It means you've been claimed, Percy!"

"Claimed by who? What am I, a lost wallet?"

"No, claimed by your dad! He's basically just announced publicly that you're his son!"

"Aaaaaand who exactly is this guy?"

"I knew it! The water, the hair, the eyes, the talking-to-horses, I just knew it!"

"Knew what, Annabeth? Quit leaving me in the dark over here, I wanna know too!"

"The trident, Percy! Your dad's Poseidon, Lord of the Sea!"

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**Oh-em-gee, are Percy and Annabeth flirting!? OF COUSE THEY ARE THIS IS A PERCABETH FIC.**

**Bonus points to those of you who can figure out what the title is a reference to. ;)**

**But seriously, if you haven't checked out my poll, DO IT NOW! It's to decide which canon character I should bring into the plot line!**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! (Voting in the poll helps too!) Now also accepting as a Beta for your stories!  
**

**You can expect at least an update every month or so. Keep in mind I am a student, and my studies are important also.**

**NEXT CHAPTER POSTED!**


	5. Water Boy

**Oh my gods, guys, this chapter is almost 3K words..?! I guess I got a bit carried away... ;P**

**Anywhooo, I was pleasantly surprised when the view count went up 100+ in the first hour after posting the last chapter! And what did I say was the last view count? 700? WELL NOW IT'S 1,100+! Thanks, guys! ****As always, thank you for all your reviews! The more reviews, the better I feel, and the more updates you get! Keep 'em coming!**

**Just for future notice, I definitely will not be updating as often as I have on account of school starting this week, so I've decided to leave you with this cute 'lil chapter that will _hopefully_ hold you over until I get around to finishing the next one. My apologies to anyone who hates waiting! (*cough* everyone)**

**I decided to put a little twist on this next chapter, so it's from Percy's point of view now! Let me know how you like it!**

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**Chapter 5: "Water Boy" OR "A Lot of Mental Face-palms"**

Percy had to admit, when Annabeth had first stopped him on the edge of the Williamsburg bridge, he thought she was kind of pretty. To keep him from jumping, she'd told him about herself, how she'd gone through most of the same stuff as him, and that now she lived alone on an abandoned camp ground. Honestly, he'd been a little more than intrigued when she mentioned that. He'd almost wondered if she'd mind it if he joined her.

But then she started acting all cryptic and basically predicted his entire life-right down to the fact that he didn't know his real dad. It scared him and kind of freaked him out a bit. Even more freaky was when she told him that she had a pegasus. Maybe it was just the fact that he was depressed and secretly wishing for something concrete to live for (however concrete seeing a pegasus could be), but he'd actually believed her. When she actually showed it to him (and it talked to him), he thought he was hallucinating. But then she'd pulled him onto it and it soared into the sky. Percy had almost fainted.

When they got to the diner, Percy wasn't sure how much more he could take.

Of course, that's when she revealed his true parentage. Percy could barely control his emotions. He was excited, and confused, and angry, and sad all at the same time. Looking back, he couldn't believe he'd actually told Annabeth all that stuff about his past. He never really told that to anyone. Then again, he never really had anyone to tell. He felt strangely attracted to Annabeth, like something in his body was whispering to him that this girl was the key to getting better, that he could trust her completely. He had no choice but to obey, but he was kind of okay with it. He felt like they were fated to be best friends.

The truth was, Percy liked Annabeth.

Not like the gooey 'I love you' like (they hadn't nearly known each other long enough for that yet, but Percy wasn't completely objective to the idea), more like a cliche, 'these two are inseparable' like. He liked how she knew what to say to make him feel better, and the soft, caring touch she had. Her eyes showed intelligent understanding but also held a sort of unquestionable authority. Of course it also helped that she was pretty. The combination of her curly blonde hair and lightly tanned skin told him that she was a California girl, but again her eyes told him not to get on her bad side-she was smart and could use it against you. Percy especially liked it when the sun bounced off her hair to create a shimmering gold and reflected from her eyes, turning them from a thunderous gray to a softer shade the color of lint.

Percy mentally face-palmed. 'That's it, Perce, tell her you like her lint eyes. That'll make her happy.'

He shook his head and kept walking. They'd been on their way to see the camp that Annabeth was staying at. Percy wasn't sure what to expect. Was it a bunch of camp grounds like you see up north? Or was it more like a YMCA summer camp, with an indoor swimming pool and a hundred basketball hoops?

As it turned out, neither. It was more like a tricked-out summer home property than a camp, Percy thought, but that didn't stop him from being completely blown away at the view. Despite it being November, the camp looked as if it was at the peak of the spring season. A magical godly blessing maybe? Percy would have to remember to ask Annabeth about it. For now, all he could do was stare. Even for an abandoned camp, it still looked pretty darn good.

"Wow," he'd said for about the billionth time.

Annabeth had agreed and started to tell him about all the cool stuff you could do (like a lava-spewing rock wall? How cool would that be!?) when their happy moment was ruined by a flaming fork above his head.

Percy thought the emotion overload would hit him again, but when Annabeth told him his dad was Poseidon-_THE Poseidon-_something in his body clicked.

He didn't feel confused, or upset, or even angry that she could suggest such a thing. He actually felt comfortable with it. Finally his life made sense.

Memories came flooding (har) back to him: the warm glow and faint smile of his father from his cradle; the annual trips to Montauk with his mother; the exploding fountain and demon math teacher in seventh grade; his strong attraction to water. Yes, now it made sense. It made sense that he was a demigod. It made sense that his father was Poseidon. It made sense that Annabeth would save him and bring him here.

"Of course," he said out loud, a grin sprouting on his face. It seemed Annabeth's excitement was contagious. "It makes perfect sense!"

"Yes!" Annabeth screamed, jumping up and down.

"But wait." Percy stopped. "What do you mean 'the gods are returning'? Where did they go?"

Annabeth's expression quickly turned grim. "That's how the camp went silent. Three years ago, the gods started to disappear. All connections between us and them were cut off. No one knew why. We all thought that this was finally the end, that this was the end of the gods forever. We didn't know how it was possible, but whatever we did to try to stop it did nothing. Soon everyone started leaving until only I was left. I didn't want to give up hope, but no one would work with me. It's hard to do it alone. I-" She started blushing slightly and looked down at the ground bashfully. "I was praying for a friend. You know, to help me."

Percy smiled wide. "I can help you."

Annabeth looked up from the ground grinning. "Really? Oh, thank you!" She tackled him in a bear hug, but quickly pulled away, perhaps from embarrassment. "I-I should show you around then."

She gave him an exclusive tour of the camp, guiding him through most of the rooms in the Big House, all of the activity centers, and even gave him a demonstration of the lava-spewing rock wall (even better than he thought it would be!).

"And since you've been claimed, you get your own cabin!" Annabeth showed him to the variety of cabins in the U by the Arena. "Posiedon's is number three, down there by the big white one." She pointed to a low, gray cabin at the end of a line of five. It was seriously dwarfed by the huge marble temple-like building at the end of the row, but Percy thought it would be a bit lonely to live alone in a cabin that big.

"I'm in number six." She pointed to the opposite row of cabins now, across the grassy field in front of them. "The one with the owl."

"What does it mean to be in different cabins?" Percy asked. "Is it just random assignment?" He remembered being at a summer camp once (which wasn't for long, of course) where it sorted the kids randomly into cabins for their team activities like dodge ball and capture the flag. Murphy's law, Percy got stuck on the wimpy kid team. He was scrawny for his age anyway, but compared to the other kids, Percy was the strongest on the team. Their team always came in last.

"No silly," Annabeth giggled, "you're sorted by godly parent!" She went down the line and smartly rattled off the cabins' patrons. "Hermes, Hephestus, Apollo, Ares, Poseidon, Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, and Dionysus."

"Oh, of course. Duh." Percy did another mental face-palm. "Which one are you in again?"

"Six. The one with the owl. Athena."

Percy could see the resemblance now. Big grey eyes that glowed with a dangerous intelligence, a window to her brain, where he could practically see the gears turning, taking in and processing every bit of information possible. "So that's why you want to be an architect..." he mused. Annabeth blushed and started down the path.

"I should show you your cabin."

As they got closer to Cabin 3, Percy thought it was kinda lame at first. It was a low, gray building with shells stuck to the walls to mimic the ocean floor. _Bo-ring_! I mean, how much more cliche can you get? But as Annabeth opened the door to show him inside, he was blown away. The windows to the north looked across the water and gave an exclusive ocean-front view. Six empty bunk beds, made up with shimmering blue-green bedspreads that changed color in the light, lined the walls of the cabin, which shone magnificently like abalone. A neat stone fountain inlaid with a coral design trickled into a small pool on the far side of the room and created the astounding effect of being by the ocean. If Percy closed his eyes, he could almost imagine it.

He instantly fell in love.

"So this is Cabin 3," Annabeth continued, "you've pretty much got it to yourself, so you can do anything you want to it. As the only camper here, that makes you head counselor - you pick the day's activities, lead the cabin to meals, and call lights out anytime you want. Showers and bathrooms are in a building down the path to the left, I showed you them before, and I can set you up with some basic toiletries from the camp store if you need them." She paused.

Percy nodded at the information and looked at her, expecting more.

Annabeth blushed slightly and looked away. "That is, if you were serious about staying..."

Percy cracked a smile. "Are you kidding? I'd love to! This is way better than living on the streets." he exclaimed, then thought better. "Uh, I mean, if that's okay with you..."

Annabeth put her hands on her hips. "Did I not just invite you to stay, Seaweed Brain?" she smirked.

"Woah! We've only just met and you're already calling me names? Harsh!"

"Percy, we've only just met and you've basically just agreed to move in with me," she calmly pointed out.

He chuckled. "Point taken, Wise Girl." She jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow, but joined in laughing nonetheless.

The rest of the afternoon was spent as a question-answer session; any questions Percy had about the new world he'd been introduced to would be answered by Annabeth to the best of her ability and earnestly trying not to get fed up.

"Why is it like spring here but fall everywhere else?" (_"Magical protection from the elements,"_ just as he'd suspected)

"Why aren't the strawberries growing?" (_"Do I look like a strawberry farmer?"_)

"Do I have to clean my own cabin or are there magical wood nymphs who do it for me?" ("_Of course you do, this isn't Narnia._")

"Have you ever fought a dragon before?" ("_Uh, no?_")

"Do you enjoy long walks on the beach?" ("_Percy!_")

Before long, it was time for dinner. As the sun set on the camp, Percy and Annabeth sat opposite each other building a fire in the Amphitheater to cook themselves dinner.

"Normally we'd have meals in the dining pavilion," Annabeth explained, "and sit at tables according to cabin, but it's so lonely and dark nowadays. It's actually pretty cool though, we used to have wind spirits serve us food-ask for anything to eat and you'd have it. They'd magically refill you glass and plate when it got empty too." Annabeth sighed at the memory.

"I bet you never got hungry." said Percy wistfully. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been full, excepting lunch at the diner that day.

Annabeth shook her head. "Never. And the food was always expertly cooked and perfectly balanced. No one was ever sick or out of shape because all the food was freshly grown. It also helped that our schedules were jam-packed with physical exercise..." She trailed off and bit into her chicken leg.

Percy nodded and chomped on his dinner too. It was silent as they chewed, except for the crickets and the waves of the Long Island Sound.

Percy swallowed. "I bet you miss them. All the other campers."

Annabeth looked solemnly into the fire and put down her food like she didn't have an appetite anymore.

"Will you tell me about them?" Annabeth shook her head and buried her face in her arms. "It helps, trust me. Earlier at the diner, I'd never talked to anyone about my mom like I did with you. I thought it would make it hurt more, but it's just the opposite. If you keep these feelings bottled up, they're going to explode and embarrass you. I mean, look at me, I cried in public before I talked."

He could hear her sniffling now. Percy scooted over to Annabeth's side of the fire and cautiously put an arm around her. She didn't throw it off, so he continued. "I thought girls liked talking about their feelings?" he mused, lightly patting her back. She looked up with a tear stained face and managed a chuckle.

She sat up straight and cleared her throat. "Well, there's my best friend Thalia...she's a daughter of Zeus...and Luke, a son of Hermes-I told you about them before. I ran away with them..."

The more Annabeth talked about her lost friends, the more she seemed to lighten up. She laughed and joked about all the funny things that had happened to her, and filled him in on all the campers names and godly parents, as well as gossip. By the end of the night, Percy felt like he knew all of them personally. She talked for what seemed like hours, and when she finally stopped, Percy realized it was because she had fallen asleep. It made him wonder what time it was-his eyelids were starting to droop too.

"Annabeth?" he whispered, poking her curled up body. "Annabeth." No response. They'd both had a long exhausting day, so Percy decided it be better for her to stay sleeping. But he couldn't let her sleep outside. He looked towards the cabins. What number was hers again? Was it that shiny silver one? No, maybe that grassy one on the right. He looked back at Annabeth. Could he ever carry her that far? He resolved that she _had_ saved his life, so the least he could do was carry her to bed. He carefully looped his arm under her legs and slowly leaned her head into his shoulder. She shifted a bit, but stayed asleep.

'Phew,' Percy thought, 'how embarrassing would that have been to explain?'

She was surprisingly light, but as he walked closer to the U of cabins he started to feel her full weight. Her arm flopped lazily off her stomach and seemed to drop an invisible anchor to the ground. Percy was thankful that she was a heavy sleeper because he was really grunting and huffing from carrying her even this short distance. Now if only he could remember which Cabin was hers...

Percy mentally face-palmed. 'The one that's not empty, doofus.' So Percy went down the line of cabins, kicking in the door of each one to check for any signs of life. Now he was especially grateful for Annabeth's heavy sleeping.

First a wooden one covered in vines; nope, empty.

Next a cabin with a blue roof, painted columns and a checkerboard deck. Were those lace curtains? Percy kicked open the door and a faint smell of perfume wafted towards him. Nope. Definitely not that one.

Then the shiny silver one. In the day time it looked like a boring grey, but as the moon rose, Percy noticed it started to glow until it was as bright as the moon itself. It's mysteriousness sparked his curiosity, but this cabin was empty too.

Then Percy came to a quaint grey building with plain white curtains drawn over the windows. He kicked open the door and found it cluttered with books and papers. Who would leave the place such a mess? Then he noticed a messed up bed in the corner and knew he finally had the right cabin. Lady Luck must have been with him because the bed sheets were already drawn back, saving him a _lot_ of work. He carefully laid Annabeth down on the bed, making sure her head was on the pillow, and slipped off her shoes to lay them beside the bed post. He sighed and wiped his sweaty brow. Percy wondered if Annabeth would help him train and if it would even help his condition at all. He was seriously out of shape (but then again, had he ever been _in_ shape?)

He pulled the covers over Annabeth's sleeping body and tucked it carefully under her chin. Laying there, she looked peaceful, and in a strange way, almost beautiful.

"Good night, Annabeth," he whispered, peeking his head through the door. She grunted and rolled in her sleep. "Sweet dreams." And with that, he closed the door and left Annabeth to her slumber.

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**"A Lot of Mental Face-Palms" because Percy is an IDIOT IN LOVE. Yes, I was definitely having fun writing some of that Percabeth flirting, especially from Percy's point of view. What did you think? Please review! I _ALWAYS_ answer back! :)  
**

**And the answer to last week's bonus question is: _TANGLED!_ (omg i love this movie Flynn+Rapunzel=OTP)**

**In an upcoming chapter I'm thinking of (re)introducing a character from the original series...who do you guys think it should be? ****_GO VOTE IN THE POLL ON MY PROFILE!_**** Maybe you can slip in some ideas you have about said character(s) into a review, eh? ;)  
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**But seriously, tell me what you think? I feel like the story is kind of drooping, so _constructive criticism is encouraged_! What do you guys want to see happen? (Besides Percy/Annabeth together, it _will_ happen eventually, TRUST me...)**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)**

**You can expect at least a update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**

******NEXT CHAPTER POSTED! **


	6. Fresh Water

**Ok I know I said I'd include a new character, but I kind of got carried away and wrote an additional scene that's like 3 chapters long. #sorrynotsorry I only got 9 votes anyway, but thanks to everyone that voted! Since I only got 9 votes, so I'll keep the poll open until I post the chapter introducing the winning character!**

**My apologies that it took so long to update. School has kept me busy! You should expect more of this though as the year goes on...my first week and a half of school was very nice, I met all my teachers and saw all my old friends again! :) If you'd like to tell me about how yours was, feel free to PM me! I'd love to get to know you guys better!  
**

**Blown away _yet again_ at your response! A total of 1804 views and 21 favorites is definitely a new record for me! I'm glad you all love it so much! ^.^**

**This next chapter may get a bit confusing because I change PoVs, and I'll admit I'm not too good at writing suspense or action, so I apologize in advance if you don't like it! :O**

* * *

**Chapter 6: "Fresh Water" OR "It's Called Modern Art"**

The next morning Percy awoke to bright sun streaming in through the windows of Cabin Three. He noted how comfortable he was and almost forgot that he wasn't home in his bed - well, he was, but not in his old home.

His new home, Camp Half-Blood.

Percy stretched in his new bed and smelled the fresh ocean air wafting in from the open windows. It was much better than anything he could ever smell in Gabe's apartment. It certainly looked better, too.

Which reminded him, if he was going to stay there for a while, he wanted to go back and get his stuff (now that he had a place to keep it). He put it in his mind to ask Annabeth at breakfast. His stomach grumbled and he checked the alarm clock sitting on a bedside table at the head of his bunk; 10:38. Percy smiled to himself. It felt good to sleep in.

He was well-rested but hungry, so he flipped back the covers and rolled out of bed. He picked up the navy blue hoodie that he'd taken off before he went to bed last night and sniffed it. Ehh. Starting to go, but still good. He slipped it on over his head, as well as his pants from the day before, and stepped out of the cabin into the warm sunshine.

As he made his way across the green he wondered absently if Annabeth was already awake (and cooking breakfast). When he peeked into her cabin, he found she was already gone. But as he turned to leave, he heard someone call.

"Percy!" Annabeth was heading towards him down the path, clad in a neon-colored jogging suit, similar to the one she'd worn yesterday. "I was just coming to check on you. Hope you slept alright last night."

He smiled at her. "Heluva lot better than in a smelly alley-way."

"Oh, these are for you." She handed him a small zippered bag, like something you'd take your toothbrush and things in if you were going on vacation. "Just a few toiletries and things, you know, in case you wanted to shower or something."

Percy took the bag and smirked. "Are you saying I smell?"

"No, not at all, I just-" She quickly realized he was joking and rolled her eyes, sighing. "Yes. You smell like fish."

Percy mocked being hurt. "A-annabeth! I thought we were friends!"

She tried not to smile, failing miserably, and Percy laughed, earning him a punch in the shoulder.

"Alright, alright, I'm going!" He walked away giggling to himself.

In the bathhouse, Percy turned the shower faucet and cold water rushed down his back, making him shiver. As the temperature warmed up, he took out the new soap Annabeth had given him - lavender scented. Yeugh. He definitely had to go back to his old apartment to get his things. He couldn't go around smelling like flowers! It simply wasn't manly. The shampoo and conditioner wasn't much better - lemon and fresh linens. Nice smells and all, but not for a monster-slaying son of Poseidon. Lathering up, Percy let his mind wander. He imagined whipping out a magnificent sword and shield combo, and slashing monsters to bits, screaming impressive battle cries as they went down. All the campers would cheer for Percy, the ripped, totally badass, sole savior of the camp. Annabeth would be so happy, she'd run over and plant a big sloppy smooch on his cheek, making the crowds yell and scream even louder.

_'Sheesh, Percy, you just met the girl! Take it down a notch,'_ he chided himself. Still, he wasn't totally against the idea. Something inside him sighed contentedly, and stared hopefully out of an imaginably cliche window.

Percy stepped out of the shower and drew a towel around himself. Rubbing his hair dry, he suddenly realized (again) that he didn't have any clean clothes to change into. What good is taking a shower if you're just going to put on the same dirty clothes again?

He was about to do another famous Percy Jackson mental face-palm when he noticed something at the end of the bench in the changing room. Looking closer, he found it was a stack of fresh clothes. Annabeth had left them for him! He felt a surge of gratitude for his new friend as he unfolded the shirt and pants to find a note, underpants and even a new pair of socks.

_'Right after you got in the shower I realized you might need some clean clothes,'_ the note read,_ 'so I got you some things from the camp store. Wasn't sure what size you were, but I tried my best to guess from your old clothes (I already put them in the washing machine in the Big House, sorry). Hope everything fits okay. ~Annabeth'_

He made a mental note to thank her and he pulled on his new pants. It felt _so_ good to finally be completely clean. Percy ran his fingers through his hair, taking special glee in its manageable not-greasiness. He even suppressed a giggle at the fact that his fingernails were all sparkling clean and not caked with dirt and grime for once. Percy almost pranced out of the bathhouse because of how magically clean he was.

"There you are!" Annabeth looked up from sweeping the Big House's porch when Percy came galloping up the steps. "You're lucky I don't have to pay a water bill..."

"Sorry about that," he grinned, obviously not genuinely sorry, "its just, I'm _clean."_ He let out a huge happy sigh and flopped down on one of the lawn chairs.

Annabeth smiled too. "Feels good doesn't it?" Percy looked dreamily at her and nodded slowly.

"I feel like I could just, like, fly away. All that dirt was just weighing me down. But now, now I'm free!" He threw his hands up in the air and Annabeth laughed. Suddenly he sat up, "Wait, you don't have to pay a water bill?"

"A real sharp one you are," she giggled. Percy shot an annoyed glare at her, but she shrugged and shook her head. "Apparently not. I've been living here alone for years and never got one bill, water or other. I'm kind of thankful though, or I'd have run out of money a lot sooner." Percy nodded in understanding and leaned back in the lawn chair again, basking in his glorious clean feeling. "Which reminds me, I've been thinking about getting a job to help maintain the camp, and I think you should get one too. One person's income isn't going to feed the both of us."

Percy sat up again. "I know a lot of good places in the city for work. I used to offer to help around some stores sorting shelves or taking inventory just for some food money. They're kind of far away though," he huffed. "Oh, there's this place on Fifth avenue that's offering a paid internship to be some guy's assistant. It's an architectural firm, though, so that'd be like perfect for you!"

Annabeth lit up instantly. "That's great! We should go take a look at it!" Percy's stomach grumbled. "After breakfast though," she laughed. "Come on, I saved some eggs for you."

* * *

"Are you sure I look okay?" Annabeth asked Percy for about the billionth time. She stood in front of the glassy mirrored walls of the architectural firm Percy had mentioned, fussing with her appearance. In an attempt to look more 'professional', Annabeth had tied her hair up in a bun and changed her shirt and pants, even though she didn't have 'anything even remotely appropriate to wear to an interview'. The best she could do was a ruffled black skirt, a simple red blouse and matching flats. If she'd had the time (and the money), she'd have bought a pantsuit or something more businesslike. She looked like a middle-schooler on the way to her first dance.

She was acting the part, too.

"Calm down, Annabeth," Percy encouraged, "you look fine. I'm pretty sure all you have to do is walk in, fill out the application, and answer any questions they might have. Simple."

"Right, simple." She took a deep breath and turned to face the revolving door. "Here I go."

"Yup."

"Wish me luck."

"Good luck."

"Okay."

"Annabeth..."

"Okay, I'm going!" She pushed through the revolving door, only to come full circle and exit the way she went in.

"I can't do it! What of they don't like me? I'm only a teenager, they'll think I'm a joke!" She looked worriedly up at Percy, who grabbed her shoulders fiercely.

"Come on, seriously? How could they not like you! You were a stranger to me yesterday, yet here_ I_ am. And you're so passionate about architecture, there's no way they wouldn't hire you. Calm down, Annabeth, it's not a college final or anything, its just. An. Internship."

_'That could decide my future,' _she thought suddenly, but she pushed the thought aside and tried her best to act confident. She took a deep breath, then meaningfully stepped back through the revolving door to her fate.

In retrospect, the whole endeavor was really just as Percy had made it out to be: no big deal. But walking into Deux Luxe, Annabeth had no idea what was really going to happen - she'd never done this before! Yet she put it in her mind that no one would even _consider_ her if she wasn't confident and determined - Annabeth knew _she_ wouldn't. And to Hades if she wasn't determined! If anyone wanted this job, it was Annabeth. It could mean saving the camp, and possibly her future as a famous architect! She let her thoughts carry her through the doors of the building and into the atrium.

And she was instantly awestruck.

The massive lobby looked almost too big to fit into the mirrored exterior she'd seen outside, yet there she was. The upper floors were open to her, almost like a shopping mall, and they stacked up to the cathedral ceiling slanted-ways like crooked stairs. The effect was beautiful, but Annabeth had trouble figuring out how the supports were built into the structure while still retaining its aesthetic appeal. Inventive pilaster along the walls of the building were worked into the design of the cascading office levels and accented wonderfully with the floor tiles. When they designed the building, they obviously knew what they were doing.

It was Annabeth's dream come true.

Then she noticed how all the designs and architecture seems to be drawing her attention inward, towards the back of the room. '_Clever',_ she thought. At the center of the back wall, aligned with the convergence of the upper floors and just out of reach of the second floor balcony stood a tall, marble statue mounted on a glistening silver fountain. Upon closer inspection, Annabeth noticed the statue was only half-finished - some form of modern art maybe? Pieces of a woman's body were clearly visible, with incredible detail, but others were just bulky and awkward, like the sculptor hadn't finished chiseling it out. The plaque below it read: _'Aletheia, the Goddess of Truth, because honesty is the best policy.'_

Something about the effigy bothered Annabeth, but before she could figure out what it was, a giant hand clamped down on her shoulder, and she let out a shriek. She whirled around, prepared to yank out her knife (which she had cleverly hidden under her skirt waistband), only to find a sharply dressed, kind looking man smiling down at her.

"No need to be alarmed," he said soothingly. His accent was strangely foreign, from a place Annabeth couldn't quite pinpoint. He had a tan wrinkly face and kind blue eyes that told her _'it's okay, I won't harm you_'.

Naturally, she became suspicious.

He let go of her shoulder and stood up to his full height to look at the statue. "Admiring the statue? I don't see any need to," he mumbled, clearly unimpressed with it. "Before I got into architecture I dabbled in sculpture - that was one of my creations that I was disappointed with and refused to finish, but my instructor insisted on putting it on display. Eventually I hoped to escape this sad monstrosity by moving to the architectural field, but as you can see, I had no such luck." He turned to Annabeth, ignoring the sculpture. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry for that embarrassing anecdote. I'm what you call the Big Cheese here." He smiled again, pleased by himself. "Call me Mr. Luxe. And you are?" He held out his hand for Annabeth to shake, which she did hesitantly.

"My name's Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."

"What a beautiful name! I assume a lady like you is here to apply for the internship?" She nodded. "Well you can follow me, then, I'll get you all set up with the forms." He smiled even wider (if that was possible), but something about him still rubbed her the wrong way. She considered ditching him and running to get Percy, but a thought resurfaced in her mind: _'This is to save the camp. It could be your future.'_

"Coming, Annabeth?"

Somewhat reluctantly, she followed, leaving the half-finished statue behind her.

* * *

**Percy daydreaming in the shower! *squeal* And Annabeth's self-consciousness: For the interview, or for Percy? ;) **

**How do you think the interview will go? Will she nail it with her Athena smarts, or will she bomb it from nervousness? What about Mr. Luxe? Is Annabeth right not to trust this guy? Leave a review with your predictions, and I _may_ just give you a hint if you're right or not... ;D**

******Now, you see, I was just supposed to write a quick trip into the city for Percy to fetch his old stuff, then I was going to introduce the next character, but my hand slipped and this whole thing happened. Oops.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)**

**You can expect at least a update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**


	7. Her Future

**I've had so much beautiful feedback (and poll votes!) since the last update, so I've decided to post it a day early ^.^ Remember, I ****_ALWAYS_**** answer your reviews, even if they're only to say hi!**

**Anyways, onto the next chapter, to find out what happens to Annabeth! I hope you all like it. :)**

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**Chapter 7: "Her Future" OR "Is This a Kidnapping?"**

Mr. Luxe led Annabeth down a narrow hallway to the left of the atrium and into the elevator. It too was decorated to match the architectural theme of the building.

"So, Annabeth, tell me a little bit about yourself."

She glanced sideways at him-he was staring at the number on the elevator wall that was going up as they rose to the top floor of the building, smiling slightly to himself. She wasn't sure how much she wanted to tell this stranger.

"What would you like to know?" she countered.

He looked down at her and raised his eyebrows. "Well, for starters, why do you want to be an intern here?" The elevator doors opened and he extended an arm for her to exit first.

"I've wanted to be a famous architect for as long as I can remember. A friend of mine living in the city noticed you were hiring and mentioned it to me. I thought some experience here might get a possible career kickstarted." She had no idea what this guy was up to, so she had no choice but to play along.

"That's very heart warming," he smiled. "Here's my office." He held open a door in the middle of the hallway for her, and she went inside. It was immaculate. The typical CEO office, Annabeth thought to herself.

"Please have a seat." She lowered herself into one of two huge, almost couch-like chairs in front of an even more impressive dark wood desk. "You look young, Annabeth, not even out of high school! How do I know I can trust you?" Mr. Luxe sat himself down in a swivel chair opposite her and pressed his hands together.

"Well Mr. Luxe, I guess you'll have to find that out for yourself. But as your art project downstairs says, I believe honesty is the best policy. Don't you agree?" she asked, trying to see through him.

"True," he admitted, "Very true. I wish all my employees had the same outlook as you do, darling." He smiled, but this time, there was a devilish glint to his eyes. He opened a drawer and took out a small stack of papers, which he slid across the desk to Annabeth.

"Let me know if you have any problems. I'll be back in ten minutes." With that, he got up and left the room.

The door of the office clicked loudly, and she realized he'd locked it. Now she knew that she definitely couldn't trust this guy, but she was trapped. The only other exit was out the window-down almost 20 levels. What was this guy up to that he needed to lock her in?

She contemplated going through his file cabinets and drawers, but if there was anything there to give him away, he wouldn't have locked her in the room with the risk that she'd find it. Suddenly a dark shadow stopped on front of the frosted glass of the door-a guard. If there was one word to describe Mr. Luxe, it was clever. Almost cunning.

But Annabeth wasn't the daughter of Athena for nothing. She had to think of a way out, but how?

* * *

"You're Ms. Chase's friend, right?" asked the short skinny lady who had just approached Percy. He was still standing outside the building waiting for Annabeth to come out.

"Yeah, is something wrong? Is she okay?" Percy hoped the interview was going okay, but something bothered him about this place. What kind of name was Deux Luxe? Was that supposed to be some sophisticated French twist on "Deluxe"? If it was, Percy thought it sounded kind of cheesy. Not the kind of place he'd look to to build buildings for him. But Annabeth had been excited about finding work, especially in an architectural firm, so Percy had gone ahead and followed her lead.

The lady - she looked like some sort of secretary - flipped through some papers of a clipboard she was carrying. "You'd better come with me," she said, a grim expression crossing he face. Percy had no choice but to follow her inside.

"She's in Mr. Luxe's office," said the lady as the entered the elevator, "on the top floor."

As the elevator doors closed, Percy caught sight of two broad shoulders meeting just outside. 'Man,' he thought, 'security sure is tight here.'

They exited the elevator, and he noticed two similarly build guards stand in front of the doors what had just closed. Something about them rubbed him the wrong way-why hadn't they been there when the doors opened?

"Right here, Mr. Jackson." They stopped in front of a guarded door, and Percy wondered how she had known his name.

"Ah, there you are, Apate! I see you've fetched Mr. Jackson." A tall, tanned man came forward from down the hall. "So very pleased to meet you. I'm Mr. Luxe, the founder of this company." He smiled wide and shook Percy's hand vigorously.

Percy ignored him. "Where's Annabeth?" he asked.

"Hm, right to the chase, yes." He smiled to himself at the clever play on words. "She's right inside, filling out the application forms. No need to be alarmed." His pale blue eyes looked straight into Percy's with an kind of sly intelligence.

"So why did you bring me here? What do you want?" he yelled.

"Ah, ah, ah! Behave yourself, Mr. Jackson. We wouldn't want to make a scene, now do we?" One of the bulky guards came up behind Percy and gave him a warning glare. Where were all these guys coming from!?

Mr. Luxe nodded towards the door. "Open it." The guard obliged.

Annabeth looked up from a plush chair. "Oh, hi Percy," she smiled. "You were right, it really was no big deal. Mr. Luxe was very helpful."

"Annabeth?"

"There's no need to be alarmed, Percy. Everything's fine." Percy was starting to think that, yes, there was a need to be alarmed.

"Have a seat, Mr. Jackson." Mr. Luxe pushed him down into the seat beside Annabeth. Shackles instantly sprouted around his hands and feet.

"Hey!"

Mr. Luxe chuckled as he sat behind a dark wooden desk and clasped his hands together. "Mr. Jackson, did you really think your presence in the city would go unnoticed?"

"Let me go!"

"Calm down, Percy, there's no need to be alarmed." Annabeth smiled kindly from the seat beside him, and she reminded him of a creepy doll from a horror film he'd seen in seventh grade. The doll had been enchanted to act just like Annabeth, all happy and 'don't worry, it's okay' just before it had murdered an entire family in their sleep. No way was he going to let that happen now.

"Snap out of it, Annabeth! Can't you see he's evil!?" Percy struggled against his restraints, but it was no use.

"Evil?" Mr. Luxe laughed out loud. "My boy, you haven't even begun to see evil! My plan is only the beginning!"

"What have you done to her?" Percy screamed, "Change her back!"

Mr. Luxe's expression became devilish and sinister. "There's nothing wrong with Ms. Chase, Percy." He snapped his fingers and the creepy Annabeth doll melted into mound of clay.

"Annabeth!" Percy cried, still struggling against his shackles. He turned to Mr. Luxe with a death glare. "What did you do!?"

"Relax, Mr. Jackson, it was merely a doppelganger." He smirked to himself. "It was a pretty good imitation, though wasn't it? I had you fooled completely!"

"Let me go! Where's Annabeth? Let us out of here!" Percy yelled.

"Quiet! Or I shall have you silenced for good!" Mr. Luxe slammed his hands down on the desk.

"Thank you," he said, sitting back down. "I have very powerful friends who would pay handsomely for you alive. It would have been a sad incident to kill you before your time, Perseus Jackson."

"What are you talking about? How do you know my name?" He hadn't told anyone his full name, not even Annabeth.

Mr. Luxe gave a sinister laugh. "Didn't you know? There's a bounty on your head. A rather large one at that. But don't worry, I wasn't planning to let you go until my own plans were put into effect."

"Who are you?"

"Oh, just another evil spirit looking for a part in the fall of Olympus. Once it becomes closer to the deadline, and once my plan is in action, I'll be sure to turn you over to my boss for a reward, and he can do with you what he wants. But until then I'm afraid you're stuck with me. Your girlfriend won't be so lucky though. She's much too clever to let live."

"She's not my-" Wait, the fall of Olympus? That didn't sound very good. Percy thought for a moment. He decided to play dumb, which wasn't too hard considering his position. "A ransom? Who'd ever want a homeless teenager like me?"

"Silly demigod, you think I'd just tell you who your enemy is?" He laughed out loud. "No, I'll let him introduce himself when he uses you to take down the gods for good."

Suddenly there was a loud crash from the room next door. A puzzled expression came across Mr. Luxe's face as a loud thump landed on the wall that the two rooms shared.

Turning to the short lady standing behind him, Apate, he said in a low, slightly nervous tone, "Go deal with her," and she left the room.

Percy's ears perked up and he stopped struggling. "Deal with who?"

Mr. Luxe sat forward in his seat. "That's none of your concern-"

"It's Annabeth, isn't it? That's where you're keeping her. Annabeth!" he yelled.

"I said be quiet!"

Naturally, Percy screamed at the top of his lungs. "ANNABE-" A huge beefy hand clamped his mouth shut. It smelled oddly like olives.

"That's better." He sat back in his chair, and it creaked under his weight. "You underestimate me, Mr. Jackson. As we speak, my henchmen are participating in the construction and repair of buildings all over the city. When the time comes, they will come alive and wreck havoc, drawing the gods from their thrones on Olympus and-" Suddenly, Apate burst into the room.

"Sir," she panted, out of breath, "the girl - she's gone."

Percy said a silent 'Woohoo! Go Annabeth!' in his head and Mr. Luxe's face grew pale.

Then it turned blood red. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S GONE!?"

The secretary seemed to lose a few inches in height, however short she already was. "Well, um, she barricaded the door, and, er, when we finally got in the room, she...she wasn't there."

"THEN WHY AREN'T YOU LOOKING FOR HER."

"None of the gaurds saw her, sir. No one has left the floor since I came up with Mr. Jackson."

Mr. Luxe sighed deeply and ran a hand through his greasy black hair. "Then she's still here, perhaps concealed with magic. Do a sweep of the entire floor. We'll find that little rodent. To Tartarus with her!" He slammed a fist on the desk and made the little bobble hula girl on it shake.

Suddenly, a guard standing by the door jerked forward the slumped to the ground, unconscious.

"What the...?"

A second guard fell, then a third, but everyone was too confused to stop it.

"Idiots, she's in the room! Get the door!"

But Annabeth was quick, and soon everyone in the vicinity was knocked out and lying on the floor. Apate was the only one left standing in the doorway, but she was white as a sheet and too spooked to do anything.

"DONT JUST STAND THERE, DO SOMETHING, APATE!" Finally, she shrieked and exploded in a puff of sickly colored yellow dust, which settled on the floor and left the lingering scent of sulfur.

"Oh for crying out loud!" Mr. Luxe pushed a button under his desk and a metal door closed in front of the frame. "I know you're here, girl. Show yourself!"

Out of nowhere, Annabeth's form materialized next to Percy.

"Annabeth!"

She glanced at his shackles, then at the desk, and she met his eyes. A silent agreement passed between then and he knew she had a plan.

"Ah, there you are." Mr. Luxe tried to keep his voice calm, but it was obvious he was a bit nervous. He motioned to her to the chair next to Percy. "Please, have a seat."

"No thanks, Dolos," she spat. Mr. Luxe flinched. "I can't believe I didn't notice it before. Deux Luxe Architecture? The unfinished statue of Aletheia in the lobby? It was so obvious!" She threw her hands up in the air like it really was obvious, and anyone who hadn't realized it immediately was a complete fool.

Percy immediately felt like an idiot, but it was all coming back to him now.

"Dolos was the spirit of trickery and guile," he remembered, "one of the evil spirits that escaped from Pandora's box." Annabeth looked impressed from his knowledge, and Percy almost blushed. If it wasn't for his seventh grade Latin teacher, he probably wouldn't have remembered such a thing.

"It was more of a jar, really, but who's keeping track?" A malicious grin had started to form across Dolos's face. "Especially since you two won't be lasting the night."

"I don't think so." Annabeth quickly drew her knife and threw it straight at Dolos's chest. Annabeth was fast, but so was he. Before he was impaled, he flipped open a secret compartment on the desk and pushed the big, red button beneath it. As alarms started wailing, Annabeth's knife made contact and Dolos burst into a cloud of yellow dust, the same as Apate had.

Leaping over the desk, Annabeth retrieved her dagger from the wall (where it had impaled itself nearly a half an inch) and started groping under the desk. When her fingers caught the right button, Percy's bonds disappeared, and he stood, massaging his aching wrists.

"Thanks," he said, blushing lightly and feeling useless.

Annabeth jumped back over the desk. "We need to get out of here," she urged, grabbing his sore wrist ("Ouch!") and running out the door.

* * *

**Annabeth to the rescue! But will they make it out alive? Who was the evil that Dolos spoke of and what does he plan to use Percy for? SO MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS!**

**Were you right about Mr. Luxe/Dolos? Let me know your thoughts!**

**Sorry again if the change in PoV is confusing. I just see this whole thing happening in my mind like a movie, and its hard to get it down exactly as I see it - I just feel bad switching back and forth between perspectives!**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. I ****_always_**** respond! Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)**

**You can expect at least an update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**

**NEXT CHAPTER POSTED!**


	8. The Escape

**All your feedback is so great, I really appreciate it! Thanks to everyone who sent in a review! I'd really like to update more, like a lot of you have been asking, but hope you all understand that I am busy with school (it's my senior year, so college preparations takes up most of my leisure), and writing well takes time. As a rule to myself, I like to have the next two or three chapters ready before I post an update, which is another reason it takes so long. I like to be a step ahead so that I'm not rushing to finish an update. Trust me, these long waits are for a reason! Just look at Uncle Rick!**

**(And actually _The House of Hades_ has been out for a while now, so I'm sure you've all finished it already :P What did you think?)**

**On another note, we've reached 50 reviews! YAY! *hugs to everyone!***

**Another longer chapter... ;P Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 8:** "**The Escape" OR A "Aren't Teenage Hormones Great?"  
**

Against Percy's protests, Annabeth dragged him out the door of the office.

"There are guards everywhere!" he warned.

She whipped out a Yankee's cap and smirked at him.

"Annabeth!" Percy yelled over the sirens as she placed it on her head and disappeared.

"Relax, Seaweed Brain," she whispered from over his shoulder. He jumped and whirled around - no one was there. "Just distract them. I'll take them out."

"Distract them!?" The two guards by the elevator suddenly noticed Percy standing alone in the hallway.

"Hey!" one of the yelled.

"Just keep their attention and try not to get hit," Annabeth advised.

"Oh, yeah, great advice!" Percy remarked sarcastically, "and just how am I supposed to do that!"

"You'll know what to do!" she said, her voice getting farther away as the guards closed in on him.

"You have no idea how much I don't," Percy said to himself, the guards now only a few steps away. "Here goes nothing!" He positioned himself into an expectant stance, ready to take whatever they threw at him. The guard in the front raised his club and Percy braced for impact.

But it never came.

When he opened his eyes, the guard was laying on the ground, arms and legs sprawled out in all directions. The other was standing above him, scratching his head and looking as confused as Percy. Then he too slumped to the floor.

"How do you do that?"

Annabeth didn't answer. "Follow me."

"Where though?" he groaned frustratingly. "Why can't I be invisible too? Why do I have to be the bait?"

"Just go to the stairwell, Percy!" Annabeth hissed.

They took a left at the elevator at the end of the hall (Annabeth had reminded him that in addition to the alarms going off throughout the building, the elevators would most likely have been shut down as well) and started descending 20 flights of steps. A few times they ran into guards coming up the stairs, and as it turned out, Annabeth was right. When it came to fighting one-on-one, Percy somehow knew exactly how to dodge each hit and started anticipating the guards' moves. Time seemed to slow down and he saw how the muscles in one's arm would tense, draw back slightly, then he knew a punch was coming, but he'd already be in the process of ducking or dodging. None of them could land a blow! Percy smiled to himself as Annabeth knocked out the last guard.

Somewhat out of breath, he let out a little chuckle and admired the stacks of knocked-out guards layering the staircase between them and the 20th floor.

"Nice job," Annabeth congratulated.

Percy beamed. "We make a good team."

Annabeth smiled shyly and peeked through the door into the lobby. Her expression fell. "They're everywhere. In front of the main door, all around the fountain; we'll never get out unseen." She turned to him. "We'll need to create a diversion."

He sighed heavily. "Here we go again," he mumbled, and he burst out into the atrium, straight for the door, hoping Annabeth had a better plan than he did.

Percy set out barely a yard from the door before the guards started closing in on all sides. They were big, but they were slow, which gave Percy, a nimble teenager, the advantage. He ran zig-zagged around the lobby floor, twisting and turning to lose the guards, but all he was losing was his breath. The guards trailing him seems to be gaining on him faster and faster. Finally, wheezing, Percy was surrounded at the fountain at the back of the building. One of the guards, the biggest one it seemed, stepped forward, grinning and chuckling softly to himself.

"Such a pleasure t'meet you, Mr. Jackson." His voice was deep and gravelly, with a thick New York accent-exactly what you'd expect from a bad-guy henchman. "We appreciate th'service you did for us in takin' out our idiot boss, but I'm afraid you're gonna hafta come with us." He patted his bulging stomach and his buddies chuckled and guffawed like they were sharing a personal joke. Was it Percy's eyes, or were they getting bigger?

"You're very valuable to us, Mistah Jackson, we'd hate to lose such an honorable customah," another said, ripping out of his shirt. Nope, they were definitely growing. Now all almost eight feet tall, they broke out laughing again. Percy looked around desperately. Where was Annabeth?

"Lookin' for this one, punk?" A third guard-giant stepped into the circle and threw Annabeth's unconscious body onto the floor in front of him.

"Annabeth!" Percy began to run towards her but stopped himself-if he did, he'd be running straight into the enemy, and they'd both be caught. He had to think of a plan.

"Found her tryin' to sneak past us with this nifty invisible hat." He tossed Annanbeth's magical Yankee's hat into the circle of giants. It landed not two feet from where Percy was standing, and suddenly, he had a brilliant idea. It probably wasn't the cleverest or the most effective, but it was the best idea he'd come up with that day, so Percy thought it was pretty darn good. If only he could reach that hat, he could turn invisible, grab Annabeth, and escape in all the chaos of "duhh, where'd he go?".

"I'd keep it," the giant continued, "but I'm more of a Mets fan."

The leader-guy in front of Percy looked impressed. "Very good, Bone Crusher. Looks like we're goin' to be feastin' tonight!" He took a step forward, but Percy backpedaled and stepped up onto the ledge of the fountain.

"It's time for lunch, boys!" He lunged forward to grab Percy, and he fell backwards into the fountain. Ok, this plan was definitely not going to well. As the giant lunged again, he curled and prayed for protection.

Suddenly, he felt a tugging sensation in his gut and his surroundings exploded. Percy expected to be impaled by pieces of glass or floor-tile as the building collapsed, but all he experienced was a loud gushing in his ears and cold rippling over his body. Confused, he looked up to find the giants struggling against thick streams of water like fire hoses spouting from burst pipes in the fountain. They all seemed to be trying to get to Percy, to detain him, but all they got was a mouth full of water. Percy inspected his clothes and laughed to himself. Despite being at the epicenter of the fountain explosion, he was completely dry, like he'd been emerging from the East River.

"Annabeth!"

She was lying about a yard from him, drenched, but safely away from the giants - for now. Percy ran to her, prepared to drag her from the place if he had to, but she spat and coughed and rolled over to empty her mouth of water.

"Are you okay?" he yelled over the jets of water. He helped her up and held her to keep her stable on the wet floor.

The giants weren't so lucky. As more and more water washed over them, the wetter they got, and the floor too. Soon they were slipping and sliding all over the place. As they tried to stand up, another, harder rush of water would come at them and knock them down again. Somehow Percy knew how much pressure was pent up inside the pipes, and boy was it a lot.

But the flopping giants made getting to the door and out of the building almost like an obstacle course. And once the giants realized their food was behind them, it would be relatively easy for them to follow.

"How are you doing that?" Annabeth yelled. Percy just gave her a puzzled shrug. "Well whatever you're doing, don't stop!" She pulled him forward and they ran for their lives. They were already to the door before the giants noticed that they had fled, but fatigue was starting to settle into Percy. He somehow summoned a huge wave from the pipes and knocked the giants down one last time before they left the building, but then all aid from the fountain ceased. Percy caught a glimpse of a giant emerging from the spinning glass door, growling as Annabeth tugged him around a corner.

A cold sweat started for bead up on Percy's forehead as she pulled him along, block after block saying, "Keep running, we have to lose them." Percy noticed the desperation slowly creeping into her voice. Every block they went and every corner they turned got them further from the building, but got them closer to Percy's full collapse.

Finally, he slipped his hand from hers and put it to his head. "Annabeth," he muttered.

"Oh my Gods, Percy! You're white as a ghost!" She swiftly reached out to catch him as his legs weakened beneath him. Quickly spotting a bench, she drag-walked him over to it and sat him down. He looked about to pass out.

"Uhg, I was such an idiot," she scolded, seating herself beside him. "I should have known! This is all my fault."

Percy lifted his head from between his knees to see Annabeth's buried in her hands. When he heard her sniffle, he realized that her face wasn't only wet because of the fountain water. "It's all my fault," she whimpered. Percy didn't have the energy to reply. He simply returned his head to his lap and focused on the dull throbbing in his head.

But then she let out a sob that sobered him up. A huge, heart-broken sob. Before then, Percy had thought of Annabeth as a relatively strong-willed person. She'd lived alone for years now, taking care of herself and most of the campgrounds. She was so methodical and cool-headed, he'd never have imagined her to break down like this. Sure, she'd gotten a bit upset about missing her friends last night, but she'd been without them, or anyone for that matter, for a whole four years. Any other person would have gone crazy. He couldn't imagine how she was feeling right now.

He suddenly felt his weariness almost melt away as Annabeth's well-being took priority. "It's okay, Annabeth," he consoled, stroking her back, "Everything's fine now. We're alive and safe, and that's all that matters."

Annabeth lifted her legs from the ground and curled herself closer to Percy's body, still crying, and suddenly he became self-conscious. His heart pumped loudly in his ears, and he wondered if Annabeth could hear. He'd never been this close to a girl before. What was he supposed to do? He could smell her shampoo and lemon soap. If he sat there staring uncomfortably at Annabeth snuggled next to him, he'd get weird looks from people passing by, but he didn't want to invade her personal space - they hadn't known each other that long. Testing the boundary, he placed his arm around her awkwardly. She didn't seem to mind - she just kept crying.

So he sat there, his arms around her as she wept, caressing her and whispering soft encouragements to her until she stopped.

* * *

It was a quiet flight back from the city. Percy had offered to steer for Annabeth, but she didn't give much reply. Her eyes were distant and shining, like she hadn't really finished crying and could burst into tears again any minute. Percy got the feeling that he should say something to comfort her, but nothing that came to mind seemed good enough. Her outburst earlier had taken him completely by surprise, and he hadn't really known what to say then either. Basically, he'd used up all his nice things to say.

Suffering from depression for a while really gave him some useful insight as to what can hurt people, and how to make them feel better. He'd had his fair share of "Everything is going to be okay"s from people who didn't really care. Especially when his mom died. That was one thing that he could relate to her with-they'd both felt the pain of loneliness.

People can say "It's okay, don't cry" or "I know how you feel", but they never really mean it. They want to show you that they're not as desensitized to your pain as they actually are. They wear a sympathetic mask and a pin that says "I care about you" when they really couldn't care less.

Percy knew exactly how to deal with people when they were upset because he could empathize with them - usually. With Annabeth, he was totally stumped. In his opinion, she'd handled the situation very well, and hey, they were both alive! That had to count for something, right?

But Annabeth was still sullen when they got back for lunch.

"Hey, um, about before," Percy started as he brought out two freshly made PB+J sandwiches.

"Percy, I'd rather not talk about it." she said softly, not meeting his eyes.

"Hey, it wasn't your fault, but I just thought-"

"I led us right into a trap, Percy!" she snapped. "I was so obsessed with finally following my dream I didn't realize it until it was too late! We could have been killed! My mother would be so ashamed."

Percy sat silently, stunned.

"Annabeth, I'm the one who talked you into it. If anything, I'm to blame! But that's not-"

"Don't start, Percy," she said, her tone becoming sharper with annoyance, "you just don't understand."

"Me? Not understand? I'm sorry, but I think I've been through a hell of a lot more than you. If anyone in this world has an inkling of sympathy for you, it's me, so I'd suggest you spill the beans before you're alone in this camp again."

The bench under Annabeth scraped the ground as she stood up. "I asked you to help me, Percy, not invade my private thoughts. I wouldn't have invited you if I'd known you'd be this invasive!" She picked up her plate. "Now if you'll excuse me," she said, mocking politeness, "I'm going to finish my lunch, alone. In privacy." And with that she twirled around and stormed off to her cabin.

Percy rose from his seat as she stomped down the path. "Fine, then!" Annabeth ignored him. He sighed and plopped back down on his bench when she walked out of sight. What did he do wrong this time?

For one thing, he'd totally been telling the truth. Percy's suggestion led them into the city and into a trap-something he should have double checked with first. Second, he respected that she had a right to privacy, but he thought he had made a valid point-if they were to be working very closely together to save the camp, they couldn't keep secrets from each other. Lastly, and most confusingly, he wasn't actually going to talk about what had happened at Deux Luxe. After Annabeth had finished her application, he was hoping they could fly back to his place (you know, to pick up his stuff?) before heading back to camp. She just hadn't let him get a word in edgewise!

Percy glumly ate the rest of his sandwich in silence.

* * *

**Their first fight! :O What will happen next?**

**You guys really should see my brainstorming notes for this fic. They're hilarious. I was high off insomnia. You should try it sometime. (jk)**

**But I have some srs feels for hoh TALK TO ME PEEPS. I've posted my thoughts as a new story, go ahead and check it out!  
**

**It's almost November! Is anyone participating in NaNoWriMo?**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. I _always_ respond! Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include! Also be sure to check out the poll I have running on my profile :)  
**

**You can expect at least an update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**


	9. Poker Night

**HAPPY HALLOWEEN! What/who did/are/will you guys go as? I dressed up as Rapunzel from my favorite movie ever, Tangled! I was so excited, I had an authentic dess and everything!**

******Confused by the title? GOOD. This one's another a long one. Like, REALLY long. Don't expect them all to be like this. ;)**  


******Thanks to user seabed for some of the inspiration for this chapter! :D See guys? Sending in a review pays off!**

* * *

**Chapter 9: "Poker Night" or "A Minor Disagreement About Soap"**

As soon as Annabeth huffed down into the seat at her desk with her lunch, she felt guilty. Percy was her only chance to save the camp and she was afraid she'd frightened him away. Was he really serious about leaving? Maybe she'd been too hard on him. Annabeth hoped not.

Then she scoffed to herself. Percy was wrong to intrude in on her feelings like that. It's only common courtesy to respect people's privacy. She may have invited him to stay, but there were some things you just don't share with strangers.

But were they really strangers? Ever since she'd met him, Annabeth had felt strangely drawn to Percy. When they were standing at the edge of the Williamsburg Bridge and even at Deux Luxe, Annabeth had felt very protective of him, that she had to save him at all costs. Even though they didn't know each other very well, she almost felt like she could trust him with her life, and visa versa.

Yet she barely knew him.

She sighed. Either way, there was no way she'd ever reveal to him the real reason she'd broken down like that.

Annabeth's thoughts were interrupted by a light tap on the door to the cabin. In her musings, she'd forgotten to finish her sandwich. Quickly collecting herself, she chomped off a hunk of bread and flung open the door.

She'd been planning to act all Yes-I'm-still-mad-at-you-but-apology-accepted, but as soon as she saw Percy's face, she melted inside and almost choked on her sandwich.

Percy had on the Son of the Sea god equivalent to the puppy face. And it was adorable.

He took a deep breath and spewed as fast as he could, "I'm-sorry-about before-but-I-never-actually-wanted-to-talk-about-w hatever-upset-you-I-just-wanted-to-ask-if-we-could -maybe-go-back-into-the-city-to-get-some-of-my-stu ff-at-Gabe's-place?"

Annabeth stood stunned, PB+J crumbs clinging around her mouth. She wasn't sure what to feel-smitten at his apologetic expression, relieved that he wasn't actually invading her privacy, or even guiltier that she'd ever thought a little boy like that could hurt a fly.

"I mean, if that's okay."

She gulped down the bite of sandwich and wiped her mouth with her sleeve, blinking confusingly at the boy before her. "I'm sorry, but I just can't take you seriously with that face."

"Uhh, what?"

"You look like a baby seal for Pete's sake! I can't take you seriously!" She almost felt like laughing.

"Oh. I'll just come back later if you're still mad..."

"No, wait!" Annabeth sighed. "I'm sorry for snapping at you before. I was frustrated and I overreacted. You were only trying to help. But I mean, I'd just rather keep things to myself until I'm ready to talk it out, okay?" It felt good to get that off her chest. She'd hate to lose the only real friend she'd had in years so quickly.

"Right. I guess I'm sorry too."

Annabeth hopes went out the window as she tensed. "You guess?"

"Well yeah, I mean-"

"Percy, I think you're to blame as much as I am! I would have expected nothing less than a full apology!" she demanded. This 'mutual understanding' was becoming anything but.

"Annabeth, please just let me explain!" he pleaded.

She huffed and crossed her arms. This had better be good, she thought, standing in the doorway, her lips pressed thin in authoritative expectation.

"I'm listening..."

He inhaled nervously and began his speech again, only slower this time. "What I really wanted to talk to you about was maybe stopping by Gabe's place to pick up a few of my things. I was going to mention it to you before, but then you broke down crying. I didn't want to bother you with it if you were still really upset. I don't mean to be a nuisance, but I'd just really like to have more than one pair of clothes."

Annabeth's heart leaped into her throat. Now she felt even guiltier. "Oh."

"And some manlier soap."

She smiled weakly at him, putting all her emotion into her eyes. "I'm so sorry about that. No, of course we can go back." She grabbed a light jacket from a hook by the door and stepped out of the cabin. She looked up at him with a new sparkle in her eyes. "If we leave now we should get back before sunset. Tonight's supposed to be perfect for stargazing."

* * *

_THUNK._

"OW!"

"SHHHHH."

Percy's vision went blurry and the whole world started to spin. He was waiting in the alley next to Gabe's apartment for Annabeth to drop down the fire escape ladder when it suddenly fell and hit his head.

"An apology would be nice," Percy mumbled.

"Were supposed to be quiet, unless you want to get caught. Again," came Annabeth's reminder from above.

"That's kind of hard to do when you've just had a ladder dropped on your head." He heard her sigh and spit out something that slightly resembled "sorry".

"Why do we have to be quiet anyway? Gabe's gone."

"Yeah, well, your neighbors aren't. Now hurry up!"

Percy "humpf"ed and started up the ladder when his vision cleared. As soon as he reached the first landing, Annabeth materialized next to him and stuffed her hat into her back pocket.

"You remember the next part of the plan, right?" she whispered. Percy nodded.

"Right. Now I lured him out with the phone call, but I'd have to guess we only have about six minutes until he gets back. You were right about break-in idea. He was really livid."

"He does love his appliances."

"Well we don't have much time, so you need to get going."

Percy climbed the fire escape stairs up a few more floors and peered into his bedroom window. It looked exactly like it had the last time he saw it, and as he climbed through the open window, a wave of nostalgia hit him and he remembered how happy his life he used to be. Sticking out from under his bed was the almost new baseball bat he'd made his mom buy for him for Little League when he was seven. Percy chuckled to himself at the thought that he'd only lasted one season before getting bored and moving onto basketball, when he'd his mother to buy that new basketball that everyone else had. She'd obliged of course, anything for her darling son, but just as quickly he'd gotten bored at that too. Every year it was a new sport, but Percy never could find where to fit in. He wondered if it was because he was so different from normal kids that he could never find his niche.

Percy tore himself away at his dresser and the clutter of "participant" trophies and medals and team photos atop it to focus on the plan he and Annabeth had come up with. Get in. Get out. Only take essentials. Don't stay longer than you have to. He grabbed a duffel bag off the top shelf of his closet and started emptying his clothes drawers into it. After his dresser and most of his closet was empty, he turned to heave the bags out the window to Annabeth waiting on the fire escape - only to find her climbing in through the window.

"What are you - this wasn't part of the plan."

"I know." Annabeth pushed Percy behind his bed and drew the shades over the windows. "He's back."

"What? Already?"

Annabeth nodded somberly.

"What are we -" Percy quieted down at the sound of a sharp click. Annabeth cursed under her breath and threw herself down beside him. They lay still, hearts pounding.

A door slammed shut. "Stupid kids!" they heard from the other side of the bedroom door. "Pulling hoaxes! Who do they think they are? I ought to call their mothers." Gabe grumbled a bit more, and the sound of metal on metal rang through the apartment. Then a series of squeaky suction noises and a distinctive pop that Percy knew all too well. He turned to Annabeth with a sigh.

"We're going to be here a while," he said in a worried whisper. A chair in the other room creaked and then the apartment exploded with the sound of muffled laughter. "He's just turned on the TV."

Annabeth kept her eyes trained on the a spot on the floor, her lips moving in silent sentences. Percy could almost see the gears turning in her head, formulating a plan to get them out unnoticed.

"What do we do now?" he encouraged.

"We wait."

"For how long though? Gabe will sit in front of that thing all day if he can."

"Long enough for me to come up with a better plan. He's got to go to bed eventually, right?" she asked hopefully.

Percy nodded in understanding and stretched his legs out in front of him. This is going to be a while, he thought. He sat staring at the Mickey Mouse clock on the wall and followed the characters hand as it rotated around the clock's face. Ten minutes, fifteen minutes, twenty minutes passed. Percy was starting to get hungry.

Finally Annabeth spoke up.

"Percy?" she whispered.

"Hm?" He turned to find her nervously twirling a lost button through her fingers. Percy marveled silently at her ability.

"There's something I have to tell you." She didn't look up from her button.

He glanced at her worriedly. "...I'm listening."

"I've never actually fought monsters before."

Percy sat in a stunned silence, gaping at the mopey girl beside him, only partly because of the man in the other room. "You're kidding."

Annabeth shook her head morosely. "I'd trained for that moment for my entire life. I was so scared I wouldn't be good enough. I let it get to me and I almost got us killed." She put her head in her hands, letting the button fall to the floor. "I went against everything my mother stands for."

"But you were amazing! You took out like fifty guards all by yourself! I still don't even know how you did that thing to make those guys explode into dust!"

Annabeth let out a weak laugh. "They're monsters, Percy. That's what happens when they die."

"Right."

She looked up to smile at him. "You were pretty cool too, Seaweed Brain."

Percy grimaced. "Is that going to be a thing now?" Annabeth laughed out loud, but quickly covered her mouth and glanced towards the door. They waited to see if Gabe had heard her. The TV continued to play, and they heard him sigh, but there was no change in Gabe's attention.

"But if you trained your whole life, why were you so worried?"

"Percy, you can train every day for months at camp, but you'll never know if you're good enough unless you've gone on a quest. That's where you make it or break it. It's when you prove your worth." She paused as the words sank in. "And I wanted to impress you."

Percy almost did a double take.

"I remember feeling the way you did, and I remember Thalia being such a huge part of my recovery, and I knew you didn't have anyone so I wanted to be that person. I wanted to feel like I was important. I wanted you to feel like I was someone to look up to. No one at camp ever took me seriously because I'd never gone on a quest, which I think it part of the reason I had so much trouble rallying them to save the camp. So when I met you, I saw an opportunity to be a leader. I wanted you to like me. I wanted you to help me. I couldn't let you think I was bad at fighting." Something told Percy that he was hearing everything that Annabeth had been keeping to herself since day one. Holding that much back couldn't be healthy.

Percy scoffed. "You don't need to worry about me liking you. I've been let down enough in my life to expect it now. My expectations aren't very hard to meet." A smirk broke across his face. "And you, Wise Girl, have gone way above them."

Annabeth beamed and opened her mouth, probably to say something witty about how Percy didn't meet her expectations at all, when they heard the door of the apartment slam shut. When had it opened? Percy heard Annabeth curse under her breath for not paying closer attention. They listened for additional noises. Soon, a deeper, clearer voice rang out through the apartment.

"That's not Gabe."

Percy slapped his hand to his forehead. "It's Friday, isn't it?"

Annabeth nodded. "So?"

"So, it's poker night."

"_Na pari i eychi!_" Annabeth whispered angrily, putting her hand to her forehead.

"What are we going to do now?" he asked quietly.

"I'm working on it." She sat thinking for a minute or two, then sighed. "We'll just have to wait here and hope they don't find us. Maybe if we're careful enough we can sneak back out the window."

Percy peered over the bed at the door. There was just enough noise in the kitchen now that they might be able to make it. "Let's go."

* * *

They had moved most of Percy's stuff out the window when, being the idiot he was, he tripped over a pile of who-knows-what on the floor of his room and crashed into his dresser, sending all of his noisiest trophies clattering to the ground. Annabeth's eyes widened so much, he thought they were going to pop out of her head.

The men in the other room got quiet. Someone spoke up, and Percy recognized the speaker as Eddie, the superintendent of the apartment building.

"What was that?"

"Man, you haven't got racoons have you?" another one said.

"We're six floors up, Bill, don't be an idiot. Racoons can't climb ladders," said a third.

Percy heard a chair scrape against the kitchen floor, and he realized they only had seconds to get out.

"Go, go, go!" he yelled to Annabeth, almost pushing her out the window. He wasn't even bothering to be quiet anymore.

"There's someone in there!" Eddie exclaimed. "Someone's trying to break in!"

"It's probably that no-good kid again," Bill said.

The door knob wobbled. "Locked," Gabe muttered. Then the door frame shuddered.

Percy's blood pounded in his ears. He suddenly remembered that one of Gabe's friends was a cop who always liked to be prepared. Prepared to put anyone at gunpoint who needed the motivation. _Just one more bag_, he thought. He handed it to Annabeth outside the window, who tossed it a few levels down the fire escape.

Then, with one leg hanging outside, Percy remembered the reason he'd come.

"Let's go, Percy!" Annabeth yelled, holding her hand out to help him out onto the platform. "Percy! What are you doing!? We need to go!"

"I NEED MY MANLY SOAP!" he shouted, leaping over his bed towards the bathroom just as his bedroom door flew off the hinges followed by Gabe Ugliano and his poker buddies.

"You!" Gabe screamed. Percy could smell his beer and nacho breath from across the room.

"Percy!" Annabeth shrieked from the fire escape.

"He's got a friend! Get her!" Gabe ordered his poker henchmen. "I'll deal with this one."

Percy ninja rolled into the bathroom and grabbed all the man-scented cleansing materials he could carry. When he turned around, Gabe was standing in the doorway.

"You're not going anywhere, pretty boy." Percy was amazed at how much Gabe reminded him of the giants he'd met earlier. Fat, ugly, and smelly.

But without Annabeth to knock him out from behind, he was trapped. As Eddie, Bill and the other poker men tried to make their way through the toppled trophies and piles of other junk in the room, Percy saw from over Gabe's shoulder Annabeth disappear from her spot outside the window.

He only hoped she had a better plan than he did.

"You're not getting away from my this time, punk."

Percy did the only think he knew how to do. "Actually, it's Percy. You've known me for so long, you'd think you'd remember my name better."

Gabe sneered at his comment. "It's remarks like that that gets you kicked out of all those schools, smart-ass."

"Is that what happened to you?"

He could tell Gabe was getting frustrated. All the blood rushed to his head, making his face red as a beet.

"Listen here, kid, this is my house, and you've been kicked out before, so now I'm going to take you to the cops!"

"Can't you just give me over to your police buddy over there? Or are you too lazy to do even that?"

Percy didn't know how Annabeth was doing, but he hoped she was making do with all the guys after her. He was starting to have a hard time coming up with sarcastic comebacks.

"I said listen, boy -"

"How about you listen to me for a change? Because I'd love to get out of your hair - oh. Sorry, I know that's a touchy subject for you."

Gabe's hand instinctively went to his oily scalp, where three black hairs neatly 'covered' his head in an attempt of a comb over.

"But really, I'm just here for my man-soap. I was just about to leave and never return, if you'd just get out of my way." Percy put all his anger and resentment towards Gabe in his gaze, trying to make him step away. Gabe only stared back, with just as much hate in his eyes.

"Percy!" Annabeth yelled from somewhere in the room. "Do the thing with the water!"

"What was that?" Bill said. "Where'd she go?"

"What thing with the water?" he yelled over Gabe's shoulder.

"The thing you did to the giants! Do it!"

"I don't know how!"

"Just do it!"

"I can't!"

"Argg!" she screamed.

Percy sighed and tried to clear his mind, but more and more bad memories of Gabe kept resurfacing. The first time he learned that he'd been hitting his mother. The time he'd been left after school for three hours in second grade because Gabe had gotten distracted by a call from one of his friend to play poker. The time he'd cancelled Percy's seventh birthday party because he didn't want to have to clean up after a bunch of messy children, when they all knew it was his mother who did all the cleaning.

Anger and hate bubbled beneath Percy's chest, and his vision burned red. Instead of closing his mind to the thoughts, he let them wash over him and build up in his body, like the water pressure in the piped beside him, until he just couldn't take it any more. His entire body ached with the pain Gabe had caused him, and with a bloodcurdling scream, he let it all out. He screamed at the top of his lungs and felt the same tugging in his gut as the pipes around him exploded. The porcelain sink fell to the floor with a thud and split in half, the shower head was pushed against the shower so hard it cracked the wall tiles, and the toilet bubbled up and spewed water like a volcano. Percy could feel the kitchen sink explode too, and the dishwasher, and even the ice-maker in the fridge.

Water rushed from every possible source and swirled around Percy, who was still screaming. Gabe backed up in alarm and fell backwards onto the floor. In one last exclamation, Percy doubled over and the water around him exploded out the door and drenched everything in the room. Coming to his senses, Percy vaulted back over his soaking wet bed and dashed out the window. The pipes in the bathroom still flowed strongly, keeping Gabe pinned to the ground, sputtering for air.

Annabeth helped him down the stairs and whistled for Blackjack to carry them back to camp. Percy vaguely remembered her congratulating him on his Poseidon moves before blacking out.

* * *

**Ok, ok, I promise promise PROMISE to introduce the character in the next update. I had no idea the trip to Gabe's would take this long... Dx**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review. I _always_ respond! Feel free to suggest anything you'd like me to include!  
**

**Also, I'm available as a BETA reader if anyone is interested! Free advertizing in my Author's Notes is included!**

**You can expect at least an update every month or so. Keep in mind I ****_am_**** a student, and my studies are important also.**


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